Immortality
by xxxTrojan-Princessxxx
Summary: There are legends, legends that tell of the beginning of vampire civilisation, but they're just legends...aren't they? What if the myths and legends are real? *Rating now 'M'
1. In a Hurry

**A/N: Ok this is my first Moonlight fanfic. I have read heaps of other stories on the show and thought I might try my hand at writing a Moonlight fic. I have this idea about an awesome character with a lot of history behind her (in more ways than one), so I decided that instead of viewing the whole thing in my head that I would write it down and post it on here.**

**I apologise if my writing is at all bad, I know that I am not the best at descriptive passages.**

**I'm not sure what rating this story will reach, but for now it is 'T' for language.**

**I hope that you all enjoy this and I will try to update regularly.**

**Enjoy!**

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The tall blonde stepped off the plane and watched as the other passengers made their way down the boarding stairs and into the airport terminal. She smiled and tilted her head back, closing her eyes, and letting the sun shine on her skin. It felt so nice to have the sun on her skin after thirty-six hours on a plane with grumpy passengers and stressed airhostesses.

She heard someone clear their throat behind her and quickly straightened.

"Sorry," she said as she turned to face the airhostess who stood behind her.

"It's ok, we just need to clear everyone from the plane," the airhostess smiled. The blonde woman smiled and thanked the airhostess for a lovely flight and began to make her way down the boarding stairs.

When she reached the airport terminal she looked around.

"I can't believe so many are out today," she muttered to herself as she walked over to the baggage claim area. She watched as the people around her hurried about their own business, oblivious to the horrors in their midst.

The airport was busier than normal so it was harder to get to where you needed to be quickly. Men in dark trench coats stood against the walls keeping an eye on things, ready to pounce if things ever got rough, thank goodness they were rarely needed.

The woman smiled when she saw a mother and her children heading towards the boarding gates, the children chattering excitedly about their holiday. She continued to walk slowly to the baggage area but stopped when she saw a clock on the wall.

"Shit!" she cursed and began to ran through the crowd. She was running late for a date, and this was one date that she couldn't miss. She going to meet with a Private Investigator about the disappearances of several of her staff, and about several violent letters she had received.

"Excuse me, pardon me, coming through," she said as she pushed impatiently through the throngs of people. Finally she reached her destination. There were only three or four people waiting for their luggage and they were all standing close to the baggage stand waiting for their bags to show.

When she saw her four black suitcases, she grabbed them and pulled them off the stand and with incredible strength, she strode out of the airport, two suitcases in each hand, as well as a handbag over her shoulder. As she made her way back through the airport she smiled and nodded at the trench coat men who in turn bowed their heads to her.

Once outside she stopped and put down two of the suitcases so that she could use her free hand to pull her sunglasses from on top of her hair down over her eyes. When she had brushed her hair behind her ears and placed the sunglasses so that they were comfortable she signalled for a taxi. A taxi pulled up not a second later.

The driver was a short man with a beer belly, and wore a stained singlet and khaki pants. At first she was wary of him, but when he smiled she relaxed. The driver climbed out of his taxi with surprising grace and helped her with her suitcases. He also held the door open while she climbed in and settled herself on the taxi's back seat. She really did miss being treated like a lady.

"Where to miss?" the driver asked as he started the engine. He looked at her in the rear vision mirror.

"The Madedras hotel please," she replied smiling politely. The driver nodded and turned his attention to the road ahead. She took this opportunity to look at the taxi. It was relatively clean, the only rubbish being the soft drink can and chip packet on the front passengers seat. Above the rear vision mirror was the drivers taxi license. According to the license the driver was Gregory Hills and he was from Sacramento.

"Are you here on holiday miss?" Gregory asked as he glanced into the rear vision mirror.

"Ahh…sort of, more business than anything," she replied. She knew that she couldn't tell her true reason for being in Los Angeles, he wouldn't understand, not many would.

"Ah, gotta love work. I've been a taxi driver for as long as I can remember. What about you, what do you do, miss…?" Gregory smiled, he was trying to make conversation.

"Natalie, Natalie Constantine. I'm a secretary for a large business," Natalie replied. It wasn't a complete lie, she was a secretary, and she did work for a large business, but just not exactly how she said. She had taken all the courses necessary to become a secretary and had worked as one for a year or so. But she didn't work for a large business; she owned one.

"Wow, a secretary. My daughter says she wants to be one when she grows up, she ten. Nice to meet you Miss Constantine, my name's Gregory," Gregory turned the taxi off the main high way and into the city centre.

"Nice to meet you too, Gregory. Please, call me Natalie," she smiled sincerely, leaned back in her seat and turned to look out the window.

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**A/N: Ok here it is, the first chapter, though I suppose it is more like an introduction.**

**Just a little note, all the characters that you recognise are not mine, but Natalie, Gregory, and the Madedras hotel are mine. **

**Please review, it really heaps inspire me to write more!**


	2. The Madedras Hotel

**A/N: Ok here is the second chapter. This one still sorta introduces the character, but I promise that next chapter we will see some familiar faces!**

**On with the story!**_

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The ride to the Madedras hotel was quiet, with Gregory only making comments about some of the buildings, but they were few and far between.

When the taxi pulled up outside the hotel Gregory got out and opened the trunk as well as Natalie's door and helped her out. He then grabbed her bags from the trunk and set them down beside her. He glanced at the meter.

"Here you are Natalie, safe and sound. That'll be fifty-five dollars and sixty cents," he said. Natalie smiled at him and handed him some money, picked up her bags with ease and walked towards the hotel entrance.

"Keep the change!" she called out as she entered the hotel lobby. Gregory looked at the money in his hand. She had given him two hundred dollars.

"Thank you miss!" he called back. He smiled as he put the money in his pocket and climbed into his taxi and drove away.

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Natalie just nodded her head and smiled, and continued into the hotel. The Madedras was a very luxurious hotel with elegant furnishings. The floor was polished wood and the walls was dark red wooden panelling. A hall runner stretched from the entrance up the middle of the room to the reception desk. To the left of the desk was a door way which led into the lounge, and to the right was an elegant staircase and an elevator. 

"Welcome to the Madedras, do you have a reservation?" the receptionist asked when Natalie approached. She set her bags down and placed her handbag on the desk. She removed her sunglasses and pushed them up into her hair to keep it off her face.

"Hello, yes I do, Natalie Constantine," she replied smiling. The young male receptionist smiled back at her and began to type her name into the computer but stopped.

"How do you spell your last name?" he asked shyly, as if he was embarrassed. Natalie could tell that he was new, that she was probably the first person he had served. She smiled at him again.

"C…o…n…s…t…a…n…t…i…n…e," she spelled out for him. While he searched the computer for confirmation of her reservation Natalie went through her handbag, searching for her pen and cheque book.

"Ahh….yes….here you are Miss Constantine," he smiled as he reached behind him and grabbed her keys off the hook, "You're in suite 409. That's on the fifth floor,"

"Thank you……Tyler," she replied when she spotted his name tag. She always thought it nice to refer to staff by their names instead of referring to them as 'you'.

"Would you like to pay now or when you check out?" Tyler asked, his cheeks slightly flushed. It wasn't like he hadn't seen beautiful women before, he had, but none of them ever spoke to him with respect or called him by his name.

"I'll pay now I think, that'd be easier, do you mind if I write a cheque? I don't have any money on me at the moment I just gave the last of it to the taxi driver," Natalie smiled. She liked Tyler, there was just something about him.

"No, no, that's fine, a cheque is fine," Natalie smiled and began to write out the cheque. Before he could tell her how much it would be she ripped the cheque from the book and handed it to him.

"That should cover it," she said. She took her keys off the counter, collected her luggage and headed for the elevator.

"Wait miss, this is too much, we can't accept it," Tyler called out to her.

"Nonsense, it is not enough. I know how much the room will be, and I also know how much room service will be. There is enough to cover that in the cheque. The rest I hope will go to ensuring that my stay is enjoyable," Natalie stated matter-of-factly.

"Yes miss," Tyler put the cheque in the cash draw then turned back to Natalie, "Miss, allow me to take your bags upstairs for you. It's the least I can do."

Before Natalie had a chance to respond Tyler was taking two of the bags off her.

"Thank you," she smiled. She pressed the button for the elevator then waited for the doors to open. When they opened she stepped inside, Tyler close behind her. Tyler pressed the button for the fifth floor.

"Do you like working here Tyler?" Natalie asked. She faced the doors as did he.

"Yes miss, the people are usually nice and the pay is good," he replied quickly, as if he had rehearsed the line. Natalie looked at him and they both laughed.

"You're new here aren't you?" Natalie asked when her laughter subsided. Tyler looked at her and nodded.

"Is it that obvious?" he cringed. It was clear to Natalie that Tyler was trying to appear to be experienced at working in a hotel, for what reason she didn't know,

"To me it is, but I've been in enough hotel's to know when someone is new or not." Tyler gave her a puzzled expression.

"Hotel receptionists and even concierges barely ever offer to carry a guest's bags to their room, they usually give that job to one of the maids. Back in the old days receptionists and concierges would carry the bags but that has died out, so I knew that if you offered to carry my bags then you must be new," Natalie explained. Tyler just silently nodded his head. "Don't worry, it's not a bad thing, trust me,"

The elevator stopped moving and the doors opened. Natalie stepped through into the corridor and began walking to suite 409. The corridor had a yellow/gold theme with soft gold carpet and yellow panelled walls. Small elegant tables lined the walls every few metres, and each held a vase of lilies.

Suite 409 was the eighth door on the right. Natalie inserted the key into the lock and opened the door. The room before her was beautiful. The carpet was a royal red, and the walls were blood red. In the middle of the room was a red love seat with gold edgings. In front of the seat there was a glass coffee table. A large TV adorned the wall in front of the table. Around the room were tables with vases. On one there was a bowl of pot-pouri.

Tyler moved into the room and opened the first door on his left. He picked up the bags and took them into the new room. It was the bedroom. He came back out and took the two bags Natalie still held and put them with the others.

"This is the living area," he indicated the room they were in, "This is the bedroom, the next door along is the kitchenette. On the other side is the bathroom," as he spoke he pointed to the rooms.

"Thank you Tyler, do you have the time?" Natalie inquired. Tyler glanced down at his watch.

"It's five fifteen," he replied.

"Shit! I need to go!" Natalie swore. Tyler looked startled.

"I have an appointment and it's across town, I really have to get going," with that she made her way towards the door but stopped, "Here, take this, for your help," she said as she slipped a fifty dollar note into his hand. She forgot that she had told him earlier that she had no money on her.

"Thank you," he replied, shocked. Natalie ushered him out and closed the door behind them. Tyler headed for the elevator and Natalie headed for the stairs.

Natalie ran as fast as she could down the stairs and out of the hotel. She stood on the curb and considered hailing a taxi, then thought against it; she knew how she could get there faster.

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**A/N: Ok what do you think? I hope that you like it!**


	3. Mick St John

**A/N: Hi all! Here's the third chapter. I would just like to say that at the moment I'm not sure how long it will be between updates, nor how many chapters there will be, but I expect there will be a few. I'm posting these chapters as I write so I'm going to try and write a few more chapters so that I can update more.**

**I would like to thank my two reviewers xxthefreakishauthor, and Queen Isabella, your reviewers really mean a lot to me and make me feel good about my writing. **

**Ok, enough of me talking, on with the story!**

**Oh I apologise if Mick seems a bit OOC, I don't mean him to be that's just how he came out...**_

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"Thank you Mr. St John, thank you," the elderly woman gushed as she exited the office. Mick smiled as he closed the door behind her. He went back to his desk and finished writing the report for his case. The woman had asked him to follow her son whom she thought was dealing in illegal drugs. Mick had followed him and uncovered that he was only going to AA meetings.

Mick smiled to himself as he pictured the young man's expression when he found out that his mother had had him followed. His thoughts were disturbed by a knocking at the door.

He stood up and put the case file away. He pushed in his chair and opened the office door. In front of him stood a tall, beautiful blonde woman. Her blonde hair was straight and fell an inch or so past her shoulders. She wore black flared jeans that nicely covered her stiletto boots, and a white shirt with a black blazer. She was the picture of beauty.

"Mr St John?" she breathed. It seemed as if she had run all the way to his office. Upon seeing Mick's confused expression the woman continued, " I'm Natalie Constantine, I have an appointment with you?"

"Hello Miss Constantine, please come in," Mick stepped out of the door way and held open the door so that Natalie could enter. He closed the door behind her and made his way over to his desk. As he sat down he motioned for her to sit.

"Please, have a seat," he said. Natalie sat down in the chair opposite his desk. "What can I do for you?" Mick asked. Natalie reached into her hand bag and pulled out a folder. She handed it to him and he looked through it while she spoke.

"I need your help. A few weeks ago one of my staff commented to me that one of their co-workers hadn't shown up for the last three days. They asked me if this person was on sick leave as they need to work on some files together. Then a few weeks later another went missing, then another. Around this time I also began receiving threat letters. All of them were anonymous and all said that I was going to die, but not before I had watched all those around me die," Natalie explained. The folder in Mick's hand contained the original letters sent to her as well as profiles on the missing people.

"So you want me to find the people responsible for sending these letters?" Mick asked once he had read all the information in the folder.

"No, I know who sent me those letters. I want you to find my staff. They are very important to me, I need to have them back safely," Natalie said. She leaned forward in her chair as she spoke.

"Ok, so why did you show me the letters?" Mick questioned. Something seemed off about this woman, he just couldn't put his finger on what it was.

"Because somewhere in those letters is a clue to where each person is, I know it, I just can't figure out what it is," she replied.

"Right, so you think that I could figure these out?" he asked.

"Look if you don't want to take the case I can go somewhere else, I have lots of contacts who can get me anything and anyone, I won't be intimidated by you," Natalie said sharply. She didn't like the way he was speaking to her, like she was stupid or something.

"I'm sorry, I'll do it, I'm just not sure how," Mick apologised. Natalie stood up and straightened her blazer.

"It's a pleasure doing business with you Mr St John," Natalie said briskly. She held out her hand. Mick placed the folder on the desk and stood up. He shook her hand and was amazed at how strong her grip was, it was almost inhuman. He closed his eyes for a second and breathed in as she let go of his hand and turned to leave. Her scent told him that she was human, but there was something about her that made him doubt whether she really was.

"I'll call you when I find out something," he said as he opened the office door for her.

" Thank you, but I'll call you," Natalie replied. She smiled at him and began to walk away towards the elevator. On her way she bumped into Beth.

"Sorry," she apologised as she entered the elevator. Mick never took his eyes from her, even when the elevator doors had closed and she was taken from his sight.

"Hey, what's up with you?" Beth greeted as she stepped passed him and into his office.

"Hey, oh it's nothing," Mick replied as he came back to reality. There was something in her eyes, something that hinted at extreme power, something that gave him the feeling that she wasn't telling him everything she knew about the case.

Beth took the seat Natalie had just vacated.

"So who was that?" she asked. Mick turned away from the door and sat down behind his desk again.

"Who was who?" Mick looked at her with a puzzled expression. He took the folder off the table and placed it in the desk drawer.

"That woman I bumped into, the one you couldn't take your eyes off?" Beth grinned.

"Oh, just a client, her name's Natalie Constantine," Mick replied. Beth looked at him and rolled her eyes.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing," Beth laughed.

"So what are you doing here, shouldn't you be at work?" he said as he stood up and headed through the door that led into his apartment.

"I just thought I'd come by to see how you are," Beth followed Mick through his living room and into his kitchen. Mick turned and gave her a look that said 'why are you really here?'

"Ok, so maybe I came by to see if you have any leads for stories you can give me," Beth confessed. Mick poured himself a drink and leaned against the bench as he swallowed the red liquid.

"You want one?" he asked. At Beth's shocked look he laughed, "I mean do you want a drink of something, I know you don't want any blood,"

Beth laughed and said that she wouldn't mind a glass of water. Mick grabbed a glass from the cupboard and filled it with water before handing it to her.

"Thanks," Beth smiled. She took a sip before she asked, "So what does the Natalie Constantine want you to do? Find out if her husband is cheating on her or something?"

"No, she wants me to find some friends of hers who went missing," Mick left the kitchen and went to sit on the couch, his glass of blood in his hand. Beth followed him and sat down next to him, her glass of water in her hand.

"Ok, so why is she effecting you so much? I've never seen you like this, like you're in another world," Beth asked.

"This sounds stupid but there's something off about her, I mean she comes across as beautiful and sweet but I can sense that there is something else to her," Mick muttered he kept his gaze on his glass.

"Is she a…." Beth began.

"Vampire? No, she's human, that's what gets me, there's something not human about her," Mick interrupted.

"Maybe you should talk to Josef, he might have an idea," Beth suggested.

"Have you heard the legend of the first vampire?" Mick asked suddenly. The change of topic caught Beth by surprise.

"No I haven't, I just thought that they had always been around like humans. Why?"

"Never mind, it doesn't matter. I think you're right, I should talk to Josef," with that Mick drained his glass, stood up, deposited his glass in the sink and went to the front door. Beth stood up and did the same.

"I'm coming with you, there's no way I'm missing out on this," Beth announced before Mick could tell her to stay behind. Together they left the building and climbed into Mick's car and headed for Josef's.


	4. The Legend

**A/N: Here's the fourth chapter! Wow! I can't believe this is coming together so quickly! I know that the characters are possibly OOC but that's something I can't help.**

**Just so you all know I am planning to start revealing some cool stuff soon I just need to figure out how I'm going to do it :)**

**Thank you to last chapter's lone reviewer xxfreakishauthor, this one's for you.**_

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"So you think that just because she had a look in her eyes that she's strange?" Josef questioned for what seemed like the millionth time. Beth and Mick had arrived at Josef's over an hour ago and since then all Beth had heard was Mick tell Josef about Natalie and his feelings about her.

"Well yes, but you didn't see her….." Mick argued. He was tired of this; he had come to Josef for help, not to be interrogated. "I need a drink," he mumbled and left the living room.

"Josef, Mick mentioned some legend about the first vampire, but didn't tell me what it was, I was wondering if you could tell me," Beth said the moment Mick had left the room. Josef stopped his pacing and looked at her.

"A legend? More like a fairy tale," he scoffed. He resumed his pacing

"Please Josef; I really would like to know it,"

"Ok fine. Many years ago there was a princess, she was beautiful, as all princesses are," when Beth snorted Josef glared at her but continued, "One day she fell very ill and her parents became worried so they sent for the medicine man. He came and told them that she was dying. They begged him to do something as they couldn't lose their only child. So, the medicine man prayed to the Gods to spare her life and take his instead. The prayer seemed to have little effect so the medicine man left and so did her parents.

"On the stroke of midnight, a bolt of lightening struck the room where the princess lay. The next morning one of the villagers found the medicine man dead, his throat had been ripped out. The princess's parents rushed in to see their daughter and found her staring out the window. They started towards her but stopped when she turned around. Her face was covered with blood and she had great fangs," Josef turned to look at Beth who was staring at him, engrossed in the story, "This is where the versions vary. Some say that the princess attacked her parents and killed them, then fled to the hills. While others say that she jumped out the window and off into the night never to be seen again. Now the interesting thing is that some believe that this princess is real and that she's still alive today. They also believe that her blood is the key to eternal youth. And then you get the vampire hunters who believe that if this princess is killed, then all the vampires on earth will die," Josef concluded.

As Josef finished the story, Mick entered the room.

"Which is a complete fallacy," Mick added, "If there was a vampire that powerful, people would've found her by now, and we wouldn't be here right now," Beth looked shocked at his words. She dreaded the thought of her life without Mick; it would even upset her to never have known Josef. Even though he was rough around the edges, Josef was a good man, or vampire.

"So you don't think it's possible? That a vampire could have that type of power?" Beth asked.

"Well, of course it's possible, but the better question is whether it is _probable_," Josef replied. Josef turned to Mick and asked, "Are you sure that this Constantine woman wasn't a vamp?"

"I'm positive, she smelled completely human," Mick assured him.

"I'd like to meet her, see these eyes for myself," Josef announced, "I know that you're going to say that's not a good idea but just trust me ok, I won't hurt her." Mick shook his head, it was pointless trying to change Josef's mind once he had made it.

"Fine, when she calls me next I'll organise a meeting," he said before he left to put his glass back in the kitchen.

"Do you believe in this princess? Do you think that there could possibly be a vamp that powerful?" Beth asked Josef. The story had really grabbed her interest. For some reason the thought of a vampire so powerful that she was literally the life line of all vampires intrigued her.

"Of course not, it's just a story," Josef replied to quickly. Beth knew that he was lying. She knew that he secretly liked the idea of this princess. They both heard Mick's cell phone ring and turned their attention to the kitchen. Only Josef could hear the conversation, but he chose to tune out and look away.

"Ok, I'll be there, see you then," Mick said before the line went dead. He walked into the living room and put his phone in his pocket.

"That was Natalie. She wants to meet me at my office in fifteen minutes," he said. Both Beth and Josef's faces lit up; maybe they could meet the mysterious Natalie Constantine.

"Great! I'll grab my coat," Josef grinned and left the room using his vampiric speed. Mick knew that Beth and Josef were coming to this meeting whether he wanted them to or not, so he just shrugged his shoulders and made his way outside.

Five minutes later Mick, Beth, and Josef were all seated in Mick's car and were making their way to Mick's office. The ride was silent, uncomfortably silent. Every time someone said something they barely got a response. They were all thinking about the meeting that was only minutes away.


	5. The Meeting

**A/N: Here's the fifth chapter. I know that it is taking a while to realy get going, but I'm just writing as it comes to me, though I must admit that sometimes I really have to think up lots of this.**

**I hope everyone is enjoying this story. Please leave a review, even if it is just saying "Good job" or "Update soon", it's just nice seeing the emails that say you have a review :)**

**This one is for last chapter's lone reviewer Queen Isabella.**

**Enjoy!**

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Natalie stood outside Mick's office. She was early; when she had called him she was already outside his office. She looked at her watch then at the elevator and sighed. He was late, not by much, but he was still late. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She knew that he was still driving and that he wasn't alone. The others with him were coming to see her, and they were excited.

She opened her eyes and turned to stare at the office door. She contemplated for a moment whether to stay outside waiting or just go into the office. She figured that she had waited outside long enough and didn't want to risk drawing attention to herself, so she decided to go inside and wait.

She checked to make sure no one was around before focusing on the door. She stared at the lock, her mind making a mould-like image of it. She then pulled a paper clip from her pocket and bent it into the same shape as the key needed to unlock the door. She slipped the makeshift key into the lock and it clicked open. In her concentration, she hadn't noticed the small camera in the roof aimed right at the door.

When she stepped into the office she looked for the alarm she knew would be there. When she had met Mick, she immediately sensed that he was a private person; one who took every precaution to ensure safety. She smiled when she saw the alarm; right where she knew it would be.

She approached it slowly, her eyes scanning over it. It was a simple system with an override code. She closed her eyes and let her hand hover over the keys. 9-3-8-4, they were the buttons that were pressed every time Mick entered the office. She pressed the buttons and watched as the screen told her that the system was now off.

She turned away from the alarm and looked at the office. It was modern. The only old thing was the desk which she guessed to be an antique. There were shelves filled with books on one wall, the other held filing cabinets. She walked to the bookshelf and hovered her hand over the titles; her eyes read each name with extreme speed.

"Interesting choices St John," she muttered. She ran her hand over the desk as she walked around it. She looked at the items on it. There was the usual, laptop, files, paper, pen, and a phone; but there were a couple of strange things. The first of which was a syringe. She hadn't noticed when she was here the first time because she was focused on her business, but now she had the time to observe everything.

She wasn't that surprised when she picked up the syringe and smelled blood. She knew that Mick St John was a vampire, and a relatively young one at that, well compared to her he was a baby, but she rarely compared anyone to herself. She placed the syringe back on the desk in the exact same place it had been lying before.

"Tsk, tsk, St John, you really should learn to keep these things hidden, you wouldn't want a human to find them," she smiled. She looked at the photograph that sat next to the phone. It was of Mick and a human; she guessed that this human was close to him and most likely knew his secret. She ran her fingers over the photo and found out the human's name. Beth Turner, she was a reporter for Buzzwire, and she definitely knew what Mick was.

She moved away from the desk and sat down in the chair opposite it. She had satisfied her curiosity, now all she had to do was wait.

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Mick knew the moment he entered the building that something wasn't right. He pressed the button for the elevator and when the doors opened, he, Beth, and Josef piled in. When the doors closed Mick pressed the button for his office floor. He closed his eyes and sniffed. Natalie's scent was in the elevator, but it was faint.

Natalie heard the elevator doors open and waited for Mick and his companions to reach the office.

"Someone's in there," she heard a female voice say. She guessed that it was Beth Turner.

"Stay here," Mick replied. She heard him take slow steady steps towards the office door. She saw his form through the glass reach tentatively for the handle and slowly open the door.

"Finally, I thought I would be waiting here all day!" Natalie exclaimed the moment she saw Mick's foot in the doorway. She saw him jump at her voice.

"Mr St John, I would've thought that you of all people would've used your superior senses to know who was in here, or at least have had the common sense to have some type of weapon. I could've been anyone for all you know," she mockingly scolded him.

"Miss Constantine," Mick acknowledged her. He waved his hand to Beth and Josef to tell them that everything was ok but to stay where they were. "How'd you get in here?" he asked as he examined the lock. There were no signs that it had been picked.

"That's for me to know and you to find out," Natalie replied. She smiled sweetly at him and pulled a nail file from her hand bag and began to file her long nails. "Well are you going to make them stand out there all day or are you all going to come in here so we can get this meeting started? I have places I need to be." She was trying to be intimidating, and it appeared to be working.

"How do you know that I'm not alone?" he questioned. He didn't move away from the door but stayed where he was and continued to stare at her. He couldn't tell if she was dangerous or not. His senses couldn't pick anything up about her, except that she wore nice perfume.

"I know a lot more than you could ever imagine. Now are you going to stay there and block the doorway or let them in or not?" she laughed. She finished filing her nails and put the file in her bag. When Mick didn't move she glared at him. "I know you don't trust me, but believe me when I say that I'm perfectly harmless, I'm not the one you have to worry about," she smiled. Mick took one last look at her before stepping fully into the room.

He held the door open as Beth and Josef walked in. He closed the door behind them and took his seat behind his desk. Beth and Josef sat down in two spare chairs near the book shelves.

"Ok, Miss Constantine, what was so important that you needed to speak to me about?" he asked. Beth and Josef leaned forward slightly in their chairs. Mick knew that Josef was sussing Natalie out; trying to figure out everything he could about her. Josef breathed in and shot Mick a puzzled look.

"Well, you remember how earlier I told you not to worry about finding out who sent me those threat letters? Well I need your help," she glanced at Beth and Josef before continuing, "You see, I found out who was sending the letters just after I received the first one. I'm a business woman and I own the largest hotel chain in the country, and I make a few enemies. So when I started getting these letters threatening myself and my staff, I did a little investigating. I found out that the man who owns the Metalia hotel chain has a grudge against me because I outbid him for a block of land in Las Vegas which turned out to be one of the best places for a hotel. My hotel there rakes in millions every day, almost twice that of other hotels in the same area. I found out that he had had one of his assistants post a letter to me. This was around the same time I received the first letter. After a little more digging I found out that my letter was sent through the same post office that he, Jean-Paul Anabale, had sent his letter to me.

"I went out there earlier today not long after our first meeting, and I found his offices deserted. So I went right in and looked around. In Anabale's office I found blood, lots of blood. On the wall there was a message, it said '_We know what you are. We're coming for you next.' _That's when I called you. It seems that someone else is after me, that I was wrong about Anabale," Natalie finished. She looked at Mick, Beth, and Josef.

"Is there any reason someone would want to hurt you?" Mick asked. He watched Natalie's face; he still couldn't figure out what it was about her that bugged him, but as time went by that feeling became stronger.

"Not that I can think of, I mean many envy me because of my wealth and power, but I don't see why that would cause someone to threaten me," she replied. Mick glanced at Beth and Josef.

"What do you think the message said by 'we know what you are'?" Beth asked. She had listened intently to every word Natalie had said and had formed her own ideas. She knew that Mick thought that Natalie wasn't a vampire, but since she had heard the story about the beginning of vampires she couldn't help but wonder if maybe, just maybe, there was a vampire around who could mask their vampirism, and could do it well enough to fool even the oldest of vampires.

"I don't know," Natalie replied coolly. She looked at Beth and Josef, "And who may I ask are you two?" Beth looked quickly at Mick and upon seeing his nod proceeded to introduce herself.

"I'm Beth Turner, Mick's friend. I sometimes help him on cases. I work for Buzzwire," Beth answered. Josef then drew Natalie's attention.

"And I am Josef Konstantin," Josef replied. He stood up and held out his hand. Natalie looked at him for a second, then smiled as she placed her hand in his. Instead of shaking it he brought it to his lips and kissed it softly before letting it go. "It's a pleasure to meet you Miss Constantine," he drawled. Mick had to stop the urge to laugh at his friends display.

"It's a pleasure to meet you both," Natalie replied. She smiled genuinely at them both before focusing once more on Mick.

"I think I might check out these offices, there might be something there I can go on, do you have the address?" Mick was back into his investigating.

"There's no need really. I checked out the scene and there's nothing there. But, if you really feel that it could help you, be my guest," Natalie said. She pulled a gold pen out of her handbag along with a notebook. She quickly wrote down the address and handed it to Mick, sliding the pen and notebook into her bag as she did so.

"Thank you. I'll see what I can find," Mick nodded. He unfolded the piece of paper she had given him and read it quickly. He looked up and went to speak but Natalie cut him off.

"Thank you for taking the time to meet with me like this, I know it must be a pain. I have to go now, there's somewhere I have to be, the life of a business woman and all that," she smiled, "I'll speak with you later." She stood up and made her way over to the door. Just as her hand touched the door handle she stopped.

"It truly was a pleasure to meet you both," she said to Beth and Josef. They both smiled at her and watched as she stepped out the door and closed it behind her. No one in the room spoke until they heard the elevator doors open then close.

"Wow, I see what you mean, there is something strange about her," Josef said, breaking the silence that had fallen over the room after Natalie's departure.

"Yeah, it's like she's hiding something," Mick agreed.

"I thought she was nice, a little abrupt at times but still nice," Beth added her opinion on Natalie. Both Mick and Josef stared at her. "What? I don't have extra vampire senses so I can't sense if there is something strange about her ok? I'm just saying how she comes across to me a boring ol' human," Beth tried to look at them both at once, which she found almost impossible as one was next to her the other a little further away.

"Anyway, I'm going to check out Anabale's offices, maybe I can find a scent or something," Mick said. He stood up and moved to the door. He turned around and saw that Beth and Josef were already ready to go with him. "So there's no chance of you two staying here is there?" he laughed.

"No, we're coming with you whether you want us to or not. You never know, maybe we can find something you'd miss," Beth replied as they left the office. Mick activated the alarm and closed the door, locking it behind him.

"Ok then, let's go," he sighed. Beth laughed at his tone as they boarded the elevator and headed for Mick's car.


	6. The Office

**A/N: Here's the sixth chapter and I have to say that I am really proud of myself for getting this far and not have lost the plot or written myself into a corner which I do a lot.**

**This one's for all my reviewers, you know who you are.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

"Are you sure this is the place?" Beth asked as she looked out the window at the building beside them.

"Yeah, this is the address she gave me," Mick replied. He too was staring out the window.

"It doesn't look very….officey," Josef mumbled. The building was about fifteen floors high and looked like a run down and forgotten warehouse, only taller.

"No it doesn't, but still we should check it out. She's written what floor the offices are on," Mick agreed. He turned off the engine and climbed out of the car. Beth and Josef followed suit.

"Do you think it's safe?" Beth asked as they stepped cautiously into the building.

"Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to you," Mick smiled, patting her on the shoulder. The first floor of the building was just as run down as the outside. It had cream walls with splitting paint and numerous marks. The floor was covered with dirty mats, as though someone had once tried to hide the wooden floor beneath. There was a staircase and an elevator leading upstairs.

"As much as I really don't want to walk all those stairs, I really don't trust that elevator," Beth cringed. The trio made their way to the stairs, all looking around as they went.

"What floor are we looking for?" Josef asked as they made their way up the fifth flight of stairs. The buildings interior was no better the further up they went.

"Ahhh….twelve," Mick replied when he had unfolded the address.

It took them five minutes to reach the twelfth floor, and by the time they got there they were all puffing.

"I never want to do that again," Beth breathed. She leaned over and put her hands on her thighs, trying to catch her breath.

"Same here," Mick laughed. He looked at the hall they were standing in. It was cleaner than the rest of the building, with yellow carpet and pale blue walls. There were doors lining both sides of the hall, which Mick presumed led to offices. At the far end of the hall was a glass door, like the one he had for his office. In small black letters it said '**Mr. Jean-Paul Anabale, Hotel Manager**'.

"This is definitely the right place," Josef said, "I can smell the blood from here." Mick sniffed the air. It was filled with the scent of blood. He motioned with his head that it was coming from Anabale's office. They walked down the hall and into the office.

The scene before them made them all gasp. There was blood _everywhere_. Never in her life had Beth ever seen so much blood, she knew that it wasn't possible to lose this much blood and still live. Blood soaked the carpet around the desk and a pool of it lay next to the chair, as if it had just been sat there. There were blood splatters one the wall behind the chair. On the wall opposite the desk was the words '_We know what you are. We're coming for you next_' written in blood; the blood wasn't yet dry and still dripped down the wall to the carpet.

"No one could lose this much blood and still be alive," Beth stated. Josef gave her the 'don't-you-think-we-already-know-that' look, while Mick just stared at the room and nodded. Both he and Josef closed their eyes and breathed in the odours of the room; hoping that the past had something to offer them. Luckily it did.

"_No! No, please! Please! It's not me! I'm not the one you want!" the man cowered behind his desk, his head tilted to stare pleadingly at his attackers. One of the men laughed and delivered another blow, causing blood to fly off the man's already badly hurt face._

"_Please! Spare me! I know who you want! I can help you get to her, just please spare me!" he pleaded again. It seemed as if he had his attacker's attention. "Her…her name…her name is…N…Natalie…C…Con…Constantine…" He struggled to get out. He looked at his attackers. They were staring at each other._

"_How are we supposed to know that you're telling the truth? You could be lying to us simply to save your own neck," the man near the door asked. He held onto his revolver and wooden stake as if they were the only things he ever needed._

"_B…because…I'm…human," he coughed up more blood and hung his head down._

"_Right, so where do we find this Constantine woman?" One of the men demanded._

"_She…she's staying at…at the…Madedras…she…she owns it," he replied. He coughed once more, then keeled over as a blade severed his head from his shoulders._

The vision ended and Mick and Josef came back to reality to find Beth staring anxiously at them.

"Well?" she urged. Mick and Josef looked to each other then at Beth.

"The man murdered here, he was human. It seems that the men who killed him were vampire hunters," Mick told Beth.

"And now they're after Natalie," Josef added. Beth looked at them both with a shocked expression.

"Who's after her?" Beth asked.

"Vampire hunters," Josef replied calmly.

"But, she's not a vampire, you both said so," Beth argued.

"No, we said that she smells human, but that doesn't mean that she's not a vamp, all it means is that she doesn't smell like a vamp," Mick replied. Beth still looked confused.

"Look, sometimes older vamp's find ways to mask their smell, to make them seem younger. But I've never known any to be able to pass as human. It would take extreme age and skill, and I've never met a vamp older than me," Josef explained. Beth nodded her head; she understood a bit more now.

"Is it possible that Natalie is a vampire, but she's old enough to be able to completely mask her scent?" Beth wondered out loud.

"I suppose it's possible, but I really doubt it. I mean to be able to mask your scent so well that you could pass for human would have to mean the vamp was old; and I don't mean hundred's of years old, I mean thousands, and as far as I know there are no vampires older than five-hundred," Mick answered. He looked at Josef for confirmation.

"Well, maybe she is human, and this Anabale guy just wanted the vampire hunters to leave him alone," Beth was trying to convince herself as well as Mick and Josef that Natalie was human and that Anabale was simply mistaken.

"There's only one way to know for sure, well there are a couple. We could attack her and see what happens, we could simply confront her and ask her if she's a vamp, we could follow her and see what we can find out about her habits, or we could take some of her blood and have it tested," Josef proposed. He looked at Beth and Mick, as if trying to figure out what they were thinking.

"I think we should follow her, that way we don't risk revealing ourselves just in case she's not a vamp," Mick finally said. Beth nodded her agreement.

"It's settled then, we'll follow here," Josef announced. They turned to leave the room as it had told them all it could.

"Wait, what about the mess?" Beth asked, gesturing to the room.

"I'll call the Cleaner, she'll come by and get this all cleaned up and looking like it was before all this happened," Mick said as he pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialled the Cleaner's number.

"_Cleaner here,_" the Cleaner said when she answered the phone, she never bothered with greetings; they annoyed her.

"Hey it's Mick, I've got a mess, there's no body, but there is a lot of blood. Would you be able to come by and clean it up?" Mick replied.

"_Sure. I never thought I'd be cleaning up for you, I know how you like your food,_" the Cleaner laughed.

"It's not my mess. Vampire hunters killed a man in his office and took his body with them. I'm at the office now and it really needs to be cleaned before the cops get here," he explained.

"_Ok, my team will be there as soon as we can,_" the Cleaner asked for the address then hung up after Mick had given it to her.

"The Cleaner's coming and will be here soon. We should get out of here," Mick told Beth and Josef as he hung up.

"Yeah, let's go this place is creeping me out," Beth agreed. She grabbed Mick's hand as they followed Josef back down the hall and down the stairs. Mick didn't say anything, just held her hand tightly and walked with her, enjoying the contact.

* * *

**Ok, this one I really would like feedback on cos I'm not sure I like it. What do you think?**


	7. Red Roses

**A/N: Ok first sorry that I didn't update the other day, I got really into writing the next few chapters and forgot to post it lol. I also wanted to get ahead with my chapters so that I always had something to post, and now that I'm almost two chapters ahead I thought I'd post this one!**

**This one brings us back to Natalie and I'm trying my hand at a little bit of mystery I suppose. Anyway, thank you to all my reviewers!**

**This one is for last chapters only reviewer pkmoise. **

**On with the story!**

* * *

Natalie walked slowly into her hotel suite. She threw her handbag into the bedroom and went into the kitchenette. She pulled out some cereal from the cupboard along with a bowl and a spoon. She filled the bowl with cornflakes and milk then carried it into the living room where she flopped onto the couch and began eating while watching the TV.

She would never admit it, but she was shaken by the scene at Anabale's office, or more so of the fact that she now knew that vampire hunters were chasing her. She never thought for a moment that Jean-Paul would tell anyone about her. She had trusted him, and he had let her down.

These vampire hunters were searching for the one they thought was the first vampire; the one with the key to eternal youth. She had heard the legends and someone of them she found quite amusing, others were so close to the truth it scared her.

She finished her cereal and took the bowl into the kitchenette and washed it in the sink. She then went into her bedroom and began to unpack her suitcases. She placed her clothing in the wardrobe and her toiletries in the bathroom. She pulled the remaining items out of a hidden compartment in the bottom of her suitcases and sat them on the bed while she pushed the cases under it.

The items on her bed were things she never let anyone see. She carefully gathered the glass bottles and placed them in one of the bedside drawers, making sure to lock it. She picked up the syringes and placed them in the next draw down along with the tourniquet. She locked it as well. She slipped the key into her pocket and left the room.

She was a very private person, and tried her hardest to keep to herself. She wasn't like anyone else on the earth, nor human or vampire. She was different, more different than anyone could ever imagine; including Mick St John.

A knock sounded at the door and she quickly moved over to it. She closed her eyes and breathed in. It was Tyler. She smiled and opened the door.

"Hi," she smiled. Tyler blushed.

"Hello miss. These were delivered to the desk. I thought I'd bring them up myself instead of calling you down to get them," he gushed. He held up a large bunch of blood red roses.

"Thank you," she said as she took the flowers. "Please, come in," she stepped back into the room, smelling the roses. Tyler walked into the room and Natalie closed the door behind him.

"Make yourself comfortable, I'm just going to get some water for the flowers," with that she left for the kitchenette. Tyler sat down on the couch and looked around the room.

"So, Tyler, how's your day been?" Natalie called from the kitchenette. She was desperate for something to take her mind off her troubled life.

"Uhhh…fine, busy as usual," Tyler called back. He felt weird being in a hotel suite with a beautiful woman, he felt out of place and uncomfortable.

"Tyler?" Natalie called out. Her tone had changed from happy to serious.

"Yeah?" he replied.

"Did you see who delivered these flowers?" Tyler thought for a moment.

"No, Alicia was there and she collected them. When I came through they were sitting on the desk. I asked who they were for and when I found out they were for you I offered to bring them up. Why?"

Natalie came out of the kitchenette holding a small card in her hand, she looked scared.

"No reason, you need to go," she said firmly. She walked to the door and held it open. Tyler slowly made his way out. "Thank you for bringing up the flowers," she thanked him before she shut the door and securely locked it.

She looked at the card in her hand. _'Hello Miss Constantine, we know you're the one we want, and we will be coming for you,'_ it read. They knew; the vampire hunters knew where she was, she wasn't safe here anymore.


	8. Brief Explanations

**A/N: Here's chapter 8! Wow this story is way longer than I thought it would ever be, and I haven't even reached the climax of it yet!**

**I would like to thank all my reviewers again, and all those people who read it even though they don't review. :)**

**This chapter is for xxthefreakishauthor and pkmoise who took the time to review last chapter.**

**On with the story!**

* * *

"Mick St John," Mick said groggily into the phone. He had dropped Beth and Josef off at their places two hours ago before climbing into his freezer for some much needed rest. He had been sleeping peacefully when his phone rang.

"Mr St John? It's Natalie Constantine I need to speak to you…..now," he heard Natalie say hurriedly into the phone.

"Is everything ok?" he asked, more alert now. He sat up in his freezer, focusing on Natalie's worried voice.

"Honestly? No, everything is not ok," she replied. He could hear the fright in her voice. It sounded strange, she was always confident, never frightened, not that he could tell.

"Where are you? I'll come and see you," he offered.

"No, you can't come here, and I shouldn't even still be here, it's not safe. I can't believe my own hotel isn't safe!" she cried. He could hear her pacing in the background.

"Ok, then come here, you can stay here until you can go back," he proposed. This would give him the chance to watch her.

"Really? You don't know how much that means to me, thank you. Is it ok if I bring some things? I don't have much with me,"

"No that's fine. Do you need me to come get you?" he asked.

"No, I can get there, thank you. See you soon,"

"Ok, I'll see you soon; you know where to come right?"

"Yeah, I do, thank you," with that she hung up. Mick closed his phone and slumped down into his freezer. He didn't know what he was doing inviting Natalie to stay with him. Now he had to start hiding things more, he had to make sure that Natalie didn't discover his secret.

Twenty minutes later there was a knock on his door. He quickly slipped the syringe into his hidden fridge and closed the door before pulling the cupboard wall over the fridge.

He checked the security camera screen. It was Natalie. He opened the door and let her in.

"Hi, thank you again," she smiled as she pulled her suit case into Mick's apartment.

"No problem," Mick replied as he closed the door behind her. "Let me give you a short tour,"

"Ok, thanks," Natalie said. She sat her suitcase beside the couch and followed Mick.

"This is the kitchen, as you can see, and this is the dining room as well as the living room," he walked as he spoke, "up here's my room and the bathroom," he pointed to the stairs, "this is my office," he gestured to a brown door, "and this is the guest room," he opened a door just outside the kitchen, "you can stay here, I hope it's ok, it's all I've got,"

"Thank you, it's perfect. I really appreciate you taking me in like this," she smiled.

"It's no problem. Now may I ask why you sounded so scared on the phone?" he asked. They walked into the living room and sat on the couch. Natalie pulled a card out of her pocket and handed it to him.

"This came with a bunch of blood red roses. They were delivered to my hotel. No one knows I'm staying there," she explained. Mick read the card.

"What do they mean by '_We know you're the one we want_'?" he asked. He saw her lower her head and look away from him. "Natalie, I need you to tell me the truth," his voice held kindness and sympathy for her situation, but it also held authority.

"Mick, I….I'm going to tell you something, but you have to promise not to freak out or anything, and since I know what you are I know you'll understand," she started. Mick looked her in the eye and nodded his head, smiling at her, encouraging her to continue. "I'm a vampire," she blurted.

"You can't be! You smell…." He began before Natalie cut him off.

"Human, I know," she finished for him. At his confused expression she elaborated, "A few years ago I perfected the ability to mask my vampirism, well enough so that I could fool even the best. I must admit though, the fact that the sun has little effect on me does help," she smiled at him, hoping that he would understand and not ask too many questions. She hated delving into her past, she had many skeletons in her closet, and not all of them were safe for others to see or hear.

"But, it takes centuries to develop that type of skill. My friend is over four hundred years old and he can't do that, not in the slightest. What do you mean the sun doesn't affect you?" Mick tried to wrap his mind around this new information.

"Let's leave that for another time, right now we have a more pressing matter," Natalie avoided his questions. "I have a feeling that vampire hunters are after me. I think they're the ones who kidnapped my staff and sent me the letters, as well as the flowers,"

"Vampire hunters? Why do you think that?" Mick refocused on the case.

"Let me just say that they think I have something that they've been searching for, and leave it at that," Natalie was being evasive. Every time Mick asked her a question about her vampirism she avoided answering it by changing the subject, and this fact was not lost on Mick, he knew she was hiding something.

"Ok. Do you think they might have something to do with the disappearance of some of your staff?"

"Yeah, I'm pretty positive. If someone believes something enough, they will do anything to find the truth," she nodded. Mick's phone rang, disturbing their conversation.

Mick glanced at the screen; it was Guillermo. He had shown Guillermo the profiles of the missing staff and told him to call him immediately if anything came in.

"I have to take this," Mick apologised as he picked up his phone and left the room.


	9. A Body

**A/N: Ok I know that everyone is sick of me rambling at the beginning of these chapters and very few of you probably actually read them, so I'll keep this one brief. Just a quick thanks to all my reviewers!**

**I know this one is short, but I didn't want to drag it out. Also, I'm not well informed about morgue stuff, even though I read Patricia Cornwell. So please don't bug me about it, but if you can please tell me the correct terminology if you know it!**

**This one is for last chapters reviewers xxthefreakishauthor and moonjat54.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Twenty minutes after Mick had received a call from Guillermo he found himself walking along the corridors of the morgue. It was quite sad how familiar these corridors were to him, since he didn't even work there.

"What have you got for me?" he asked Guillermo as he entered the freezer room. He glanced at several tables that were covered with white sheets. He hated coming here, but he often did, whether for work or for blood.

"You know those photo's you showed me of the missing people? Well I think this is one of them," Guillermo replied as he led Mick to a white sheet. "This ain't pretty," he warned as he pulled back the sheet.

Underneath the sheet was what remained of a female body. The body was badly decomposed and smelt of rubbish. There were a few injuries still visible through the rotting and half eaten flesh. The most obvious of these being a cut along her neck which almost severed her head. There were several cuts on her thighs, all around the area of femoral artery. Her arms were covered in tiny cuts, as if she had been tortured.

"God, who would do something like this?" Guillermo shook his head in disgust.

"Do you have an ID on her yet?" Mick asked turning away from the gruesome sight. Guillermo replaced the sheet and moved over to a table where he had set out some papers.

"I'm almost positive that it is this woman, Jacqueline Hertford, 25 years old," Guillermo replied sliding the woman's profile across to Mick.

Jacqueline Hertford was one of Natalie's assistants and had been for five years. She had joined Natalie's hotel business just after she left college and had stayed with her ever since.

"Have you contacted the family?" Mick asked. Guillermo shook his head.

"She has no family, she's an orphan," he said sadly. "We still need to run some tests to confirm it but I'm sure that it's Miss Hertford,"

"Thanks Guillermo. I'll tell her boss that we've probably found her, she might be able to ID the body," Mick suggested. Guillermo nodded and gathered up the papers as Mick left the morgue.

He sat the papers in a neat pile and went back to the body. He pulled the sheet down far enough so that he could clearly see what was left of the face. It looked as if this woman, Jacqueline, was once very beautiful with flowing brown hair and sparkling green eyes. She was five-foot-two and had a slender figure. Guillermo took one last look at Jacqueline before covering her with the sheet again and wheeling her into the autopsy room.


	10. Death of a loved one

**A/N: Ok here's chapter 10. I'm running out of things to say in my author's note so this one will be short (famous last words I know).**

**Thank you to all my reviewers! I'm going to continue to update as fast as I can, but classes start again next Thursday so my update rate will probably be slower :) But until then I will continue to update quickly :)**

**This one is for last chapters lone reviewer pkmoise.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Mick walked slowly into his apartment building. He sighed as he pressed the button for the elevator and waited for it to arrive. He didn't know how he was going to tell Natalie that one of her staff had been found, and that she had been murdered. He stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for his floor. He leaned against the wall, trying to think of an easy way to tell her, but there were none. It was never easy to tell someone they had lost a friend.

He stepped out of the elevator and walked along the hall to his apartment. He stopped to listen. Inside he could hear voices; female voices. He typed his code into the key pad and entered his key into the lock.

Inside he found Natalie sitting on the couch talking to Beth. Both women turned to look at him as he entered.

"Hi," Beth smiled.

"Hi," Mick replied as he took off his coat and hung it on the hook. Natalie smiled at him, but didn't say anything. Her smile soon faded when she saw his eyes.

"Mick, what is it?" She asked. She stood up and went over to him and placed a hand on his arm, trying to comfort him. He looked at her and shook his head sadly.

"They….they found one of your staff, Jacqueline Hertford. I'm sorry, she's dead," he watched as her eyes filled with tears. She took her hand off his arm and put it over her mouth to stop the sob that threatened to escape.

"No, it can't be, it must be someone else," she cried. Jacqueline was like the sister she never had, she meant the world to her. She didn't want to believe that she was dead, but deep down she knew it was true.

"I'm sorry, I really am," Mick didn't know what to say. He placed his hand on her back and lightly patted it. Beth came over and wrapped her arms around Natalie, pulling her into a comforting hug. Natalie cried into her shoulder for a minute then pulled away. She wiped her eyes with her hand then turned to Mick who was standing in the kitchen staring at the sink.

"I want to see her," she announced. Mick looked up at her; shocked. Natalie sniffed and pulled a tissue out of her pocket. She wiped her eyes again then her nose.

"I don't think that's a good idea," he had to convince her otherwise; he knew it would really hurt her to see the condition Jacqueline was in.

"No, I need to see her," she persisted. Mick saw the pleading in her eyes and he gave in.

"Ok, I'll take you to see her," he mumbled.

"Thank you," she replied sadly. She went to the spare room and grabbed a coat out of her suitcase; she hadn't taken anything out yet, she wasn't sure how long she'd have to stay. When she walked into the living room she saw the look of sympathy and sadness on Beth's face.

"You can come too if you want," she said to Beth.

"If you want me to I will," Beth answered. Natalie thought for a moment then nodded.

"Ok, we better get going," Mick said. He pulled out his phone and called Guillermo to tell him they were coming. Beth took Natalie's arm and they left the apartment headed for Mick's car.

It only took fifteen minutes for them to reach the morgue. Natalie paused as everyone else climbed out of the car.

"Are you sure you still want to do this?" Mick asked softly. Natalie looked at him then nodded.

"Yes, I need to know that it's her," she replied. She climbed out of the car and locked the door.


	11. Identification

**A/N: Here's No. 11. I know that these ones are short but I just wrote one that is 2,699 words long so far. I would like to thank all my reviewers and celebrate that I now(before this chapter) have more reviews than chapters lol.**

**This one is for Anna.St.James, xosummerxo, moonjat54, and xxthefreakishauthor, who reviewed last chapter.**

**On with the story!**

* * *

They walked slowly down the corridor of the LA County morgue. Mick was two paces ahead of Natalie and Beth. He hated this part, showing grieving family and friends their worst nightmare; a loved one's body. He glanced behind him at Natalie. She stood tall, her chin up, not a tear in her eye. Beth was walking beside her, her gaze fixed on the path ahead of her.

They turned around a corner and Mick stopped them.

"Are you sure you're ready for this? It's not too late to turn back," he questioned. Natalie to a deep breath and glanced at the door in front of them.

"Yes, I'm ready, well as ready as anyone ever could be for something like this," she smiled weakly. Natalie was like a pillar of strength. She had cried a little when she had first heard about Jacqueline, but now there wasn't a trace of pain or distress about her. She nodded to confirm her words and they continued on through the door.

"Guillermo," Mick said as they entered the freezer room. There were a few more bodies in the room than there had been earlier, but Jacqueline's body wasn't there.

"Mick, what can I do for you?" Guillermo greeted. He wiped his hands on a towel and held it out for Mick. Mick shook it.

"This is Natalie Constantine, she's Jacqueline Hertford's employer, she's here to identify the body," Mick introduced her. Guillermo stared at Natalie for a moment.

"This way then," he said and led them into the autopsy room. Beth lagged behind as Natalie followed Guillermo into the next room. Mick noticed Beth standing in the freezer room and stopped.

"You ok?" he asked.

"Yeah, I've just never really…..I don't know if I can go in there, it's stupid I know but it scares me. I might wait here," she replied. Mick smiled softly at her.

"Ok, we won't be long," with that he went in the same direction as Guillermo and Natalie.

"I have to warn you, this isn't pretty," Guillermo warned Natalie before he pulled back the clean white sheet that had been placed over the body after the autopsy. Natalie didn't even flinch at the sight or the smell. She gazed down at the face and sighed.

"I'm so, so sorry Jackie, I couldn't protect you," she said softy to the body. Mick put his hand on her shoulder, drawing her attention.

"Is it….." he couldn't finish the question, but Natalie knew what he meant.

"Yes, it is her, Jacqueline Hertford. I can't believe it's her, but it is, I'd recognise that face anywhere," she replied sadly. She looked down at Jacqueline's body before nodding to Guillermo that she has seen enough. She thanked him then turned and left the room.

"Was it….." Beth began when she saw Natalie and Mick return. She had been waiting in the corridor for them.

"Yes," Natalie replied.

"I'm sorry," Beth expressed her sympathy. Together they walked out of the morgue, all silent. No one knew what to say. Beth and Mick never knew Jacqueline, so they didn't know what to say to Natalie to comfort her, and Natalie didn't feel comfortable talking about Jacqueline.

They climbed into Mick's car and drove silently back to Mick's apartment.

Once inside Beth and Natalie sat on the couch while Mick went into the kitchen. He poured a glass of blood and downed it in one. He poured another and did the same. It was four in the afternoon and he was exhausted. He filled his glass again and leaned against the sink. He stared at the red liquid in his glass, not really seeing it, but thinking about everything that had happened in the past twenty four hours.

He heard Natalie get up from the couch and walk into the kitchen. He looked up at her and saw her gentle smile.

"You got any more of that?" she asked, gesturing to his drink. He nodded and grabbed a second glass and a bottle of blood. He set the items on the table. "Thanks," she said before pouring herself a glass.

"What the….." Beth started when she saw Natalie down the glass of blood. "I thought……you're….."

"I'm a vampire," Natalie replied calmly, laughing at Beth's expression.

"You are?" Beth asked, confused. "But you smelled human…"

"I know. I practised for a long time to perfect that ability; it really comes in handy, especially when people all over want you dead," Natalie briefly explained as she poured herself another glass. Beth nodded slowly, letting it all sink in.

"Well, I should probably head home, I don't want Josh to worry," Beth said as she stood up. "Plus I'm really quite tired," she yawned and stretched. She grabbed her handbag and coat and headed for the door.

"Go on," Natalie quietly urged Mick.

"What?" he whispered back.

"Don't play ignorant with me, I can smell your desire from each other from here, go to her, drive her home," she replied nudging him in the side. He looked over to Beth and placed his glass in the sink as he walked over to the door.

"I'll drive you home," he said as he grabbed his coat off the rack.

"Thanks," Beth smiled. Mick opened the door and held it while she left. He smiled at Natalie as he followed Beth out of the apartment. Natalie smiled back and watched as they left. When she heard the elevator doors open and close she felt the tears come. She tried to push them away, but no matter how hard she tried, they wouldn't leave.

She felt the first tear slip from her eye and brushed it away. That one was followed by another and another until they were streaming down her cheeks. A sob left her body and she slid down the bench until she was sitting on the floor. The glass slipped from her hand and shattered on the floor, but she didn't care. She pulled her knees up under her chin and wrapped her arms around them. She rocked herself slowly as she cried, her mind filled with regrets from her past, and the dangers of her future.


	12. Mourning

**A/N: Here is No. 12. I still have heaps of chapters left as I have just written chapter 15, and I'm only just really getting into the mystery. I'm not too sure just yet how Mick's gonna solve this one, but I promise that there will be surprises.**

**This one is for last chapters lone reviewer, moonjat54.**

**Enjoy!**

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Josef typed the override code into the keypad then inserted his key into the lock. He didn't bother to knock, and walked straight into Mick's apartment. He glanced around the room; it was empty. He stepped further into the room, closing the door behind him.

"Mick!" he called out. When he got no reply he headed for the stairs. Just as his foot hit the first step he heard it. It was only soft, but it was there; a sob and it was coming from the kitchen. He backed away from the stairs and headed cautiously for the kitchen.

He picked up a piece of wood that lay near the fireplace and held it up; ready to strike. The closer he was to the kitchen, the louder the sobs were. He looked in the kitchen and saw no one, but he could still hear the sobbing. He stepped carefully around to the sink and that's when he saw her.

Natalie sat on the floor, hugging her knees and sobbing. The sight broke his heart. He placed the wood on the bench and knelt down beside her.

"Hey, you alright?" he asked gently. Natalie didn't even look at him; she just kept crying and mumbling to herself. He saw her shake her head a caught some of the words she said.

"It's not right…..it shouldn't be like this……I should never have stayed……I should be gone……." She muttered. Josef stretched out his hand and placed it on her shoulder; she spun around to look at him as though she had just noticed him. He glanced down at the floor and saw the broken glass and the blood.

"Are you hurt?" he asked. She followed his gaze and shook her head. She held out her hands and he saw that they were fine.

"What's wrong?" he sat beside her and leaned against the bench. She leaned her head against the bench and turned it to face him. She didn't reply, but simply placed her head on his shoulder. Josef was at a loss, he didn't know what to say or do as he didn't know what was wrong. So he did the only thing he could do. He reached his right hand out and grabbed hers, holding it tight. Natalie lifted her head from his shoulder and looked at him.

"It's not fair," her voice was choked with tears.

"No, no it's not," he replied. He didn't know what she was talking about but figured that it would be best if he agreed with her.

"They shouldn't have taken her, she didn't know anything, none of them did," she continued. She leaned her head back against his shoulder. "She was the closest thing to a sister I had left in this world. I was the eldest of five children, and the only girl. I waited years to find someone I could trust, and now she's gone," Natalie began to cry again.

"I'm sorry," was all he could think of to say. He let go of her hand and put his arm around her shoulders; pulling her close to him. She wrapped her arms around him and cried into his chest. She cried until she had no more tears to cry. She cried for all the pain she had caused in her life, and for all the pain she had endured. She cried for lost souls, and for lost loves. All through her crying Josef sat there, holding her.

She felt wonderful in his arms, almost a perfect fit. He placed his cheek on her hair and closed his eyes. He held her until she stopped crying, but when he went to move away, he had a change of heart. He settled against her again and held her tight. She snuggled against his chest, closing her eyes. Josef listened to her breathing as it became slow and even; she had fallen asleep. He thought about waking her up and sending her to the spare room, but didn't have the heart to wake her.


	13. Waking

**A/N: Sorry about the day's wait, here's chapter thirteen!**

**I've started writing the sixteenth chapter, and that one reallt gets into the mystery. I promise not to drag it out too much, but I have to be careful that I don't wrap it up too suddenly.**

**This is for last chapter's lone reviewer moonjat54.**

**Enjoy!**

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Mick stepped out of the elevator and headed towards his apartment, still smiling from his conversation with Beth. He reached out to put the override code into the keypad but stopped when he noticed that it wasn't turned on, meaning that someone had entered his apartment after he left. At first he thought that Natalie had left then returned without setting the alarm, but when he inhaled it wasn't her scent he found but Josef's.

He opened the door and stepped into the apartment, closing the door behind him. He took off his coat and hung it on the coat rack before moving further into the room. He opened his mouth to greet Josef and Natalie, but found the room was empty. He stood still for a moment and listened. He could hear soft breathing in the kitchen, so he headed that way. What he saw he would never forget.

Josef sat on the kitchen floor with Natalie in his arms. Her head was leaning on his chest, her eyes closed, but still red from crying. Josef's head rested on hers; he was also asleep. Mick gazed at the two for a moment, committing the image to his memory. He then regrettably woke them up.

"Josef? Natalie? Wake up," he urged them softly. Josef and Natalie both groaned at the disturbance, but opened their eyes none-the-less. Neither realised how they were sitting. Josef slowly removed his arms from around Natalie and stretched. Natalie unwound her arms from around Josef and stood up. Josef glanced up and Mick and saw him grinning.

"What? You think it's funny to wake me when I'm sleeping?" he grumbled as he struggled to his feet. He leaned from side to side trying to remove the stiffness in his back from sitting on the floor for so long.

"No, it's just…..you know it's nothing," Mick began to explain but stopped himself. He looked at Natalie and then at Josef. They both looked like they had been hit by a bus; twenty four hours without sleep would do that to you.

"Why don't you crash here for a while, you can take the freezer and I'll take the couch, 'cause you look like shit," Mick offered Josef. When Mick said the word 'freezer' Josef looked shocked.

"It's ok, I'm a vamp too," Natalie laughed.

"Well you should take the freezer then," Josef said.

"Thanks, but I don't need it, I prefer to sleep in a bed actually," Natalie smiled. At Josef's inquisitive look she added, "It's a long story, and I'm too tired to tell it. I'm going to bed. Goodnight." She waved to Mick and Josef as she left the kitchen and entered the spare room.

Josef watched her every step with such an intensity that made Mick laugh. Josef turned to Mick and glared at him.

"Sorry," Mick raised his hands in mock defeat while still laughing.

"Ok, for that I will take up the offer for the freezer," with that Josef stomped out of the kitchen and up the stairs into Mick's freezer room. He slammed the door and Mick laughed again. Sometimes Josef could be the biggest kid he had ever met. Mick looked down and saw the shattered glass and blood on the floor and went to fetch a cloth and dust-pan and broom.

He swept the glass into the dust-pan and threw it in the bin. He knelt down next to the spilt blood and began to wipe it up with the cloth but stopped. Most of the blood was still red, but there was a small patch that was black. He dabbed the cloth in it, expecting it to be hard and dry, but found that it was still wet. Puzzled he lifted the cloth to his face and sniffed the black blood; it was Natalie's.

He knew that Natalie was a vampire, and most likely a fairly old vamp, but none of the vamp's he knew that were old had black blood. Something about Natalie bugged him, like there was more to the story than she was telling him. He had met vampire hunters before, they usually hunted vamp's to try and destroy the species, so he didn't understand why they would send threats to Natalie saying she had something they wanted. Normally they would just barge right in and attack.

Vampire hunters had been around for centuries and in that time they had become skilled hunters. They carried all the right weapons; guns with silver bullets, wooden stakes, silver edged swords and daggers, all designed to kill. They knew all weaknesses that vampires possessed and almost always used them to their advantage, whether by steering a vampire into the sunlight or by trapping them with fire. But vampire hunters weren't perfect; they couldn't tell a vampire from a human unless that vampire had been revealed to them.

Mick thought on this while he cleaned up the blood and washed the cloth in the sink. There were so many questions he had. And he knew that he would have them answered eventually. He hung the wash cloth around the tap and headed for the couch. On the way he stopped to check in on Natalie.

He found her sleeping peacefully on the bed, still fully clothed. He smiled to himself at the sight; she looked like an angel. He stepped into the room and grabbed a blanket out of the wardrobe. Carefully he placed it over her before taking one last look at her and leaving the room.

He closed the door behind him softly and went to one of the cupboards. He pulled out a light blanket and carried it over to the couch. He lay down and pulled the blanket up over him. It wasn't going to be the most comfortable of nights, and he wasn't going to get too much sleep, but Josef needed the freezer more than he did, or so it seemed to him. He closed his eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep.


	14. Dreams of the Past

**A/N: Ok this is chapter 14 and the longest that I have written and I must say that it is my favourite so far and the one I am most anxious about. I really want to know what you think of my story, this chapter in particular. I researched the names I use here and chose them because of their meaning.**

**This is for last chapters reviewers: scrappyearnhardt, Lennon Drop, ErisFury, and pkmoise.**

**As always thank you to all those who have reviewed my story.**

**Anyway, enough of me yabbering on, here's chapter 14...**

**Enjoy!**

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The young woman stood at the top of the hill and looked down at the town below. Screams pierced the air as villagers ran helplessly from their burning homes. Flames leapt high into the sky, lighting up the valley. A lone tear slipped down her cheek as she watched the massacre. They were after her; the ones who had torched the village were after her. When they had found out that she was hiding out in the small village of Hellenia they had attacked the village with all the troops they could find. She had slipped out just as the first soldiers reached the village._

_She had left through the rear of the village and escaped to the top of a hill. She knew that no one could see her from there as trees hid her from view. She shook her head sadly as the soldiers slowly killed the villagers who had kindly taken her in. She felt so guilty. Because of her, two hundred innocent people had died. Their deaths were not necessary; they couldn't have said where she was because they didn't know. She vowed that one day she would avenge their deaths._

_She turned away from the burning villages and ran off into the trees. She ran as fast as she could as she knew it wouldn't be long before the soldiers started searching the surrounding areas for her. As she ran branches cut at her arms and legs but left no marks. Just as she came upon a clearing she slipped on a loose rock and fell. A stone stabbed into her stomach as she hit the ground with a thud. _

_She groaned from the sudden pain and rolled over. She looked down at her stomach and saw a large, sharp rock protruding from her body. She slowly reached a hand down and yanked the stone from her flesh. She threw it into the shrubs and watched as the wound healed. _

_She quickly pulled herself to her feet and started to run again. After running for five minutes she stopped and leaned against a tree. She closed her eyes and focused on the path she had just taken. She heard three soldiers as they stopped and examined the blood on the ground where she fell. She heard one bend down and run his finger through the black substance, he brought his finger to his face and sniffed it. _

"_She's been here," he told the others. "She ran through here," he pointed in front of him before leading the others down the path._

_She opened her eyes again. They weren't far behind her. She took a deep breath and began to run again. She knew that she couldn't run forever, but she would make sure that she didn't die today, that all the villagers hadn't lost their lives for a lost cause._

_She pushed herself harder than she ever had before, her legs were hurting from running barefoot across rocky ground, but she ignored the pain and kept moving. Suddenly she heard noises behind her and stopped in her tracks. She turned around and looked straight into the face of one of the soldiers. He wasn't one of the ones she had seen following her before; he must've been part of another search party. She took in his appearance. He was tall, with more of a boyish figure than the others. He wore bronze armour that protected only his chest and back; it offered little protection from the types they hunted. He was covered with dirt, grime, and little scratches from the branches he had passed._

_She looked at his face.__ He couldn't have been more than fifteen. He had brown hair cut short and bright green eyes. She could smell his fear. He didn't want to be there, he wanted to be home with his family, not hunting her down like game._

_She tilted her head to the side as she heard others approach. They came from all directions and gathered around her; trapping her in a circle. She could smell how scared they were, none of them had ever faced someone like her before; she was one of a kind. She kept her eyes trained on the young boy as she thought about how she must look to them. _

_She was tall for a woman and had long blonde hair which hung mid-way down her back. She had sticks and twigs through her hair from running and dirt on her face and clothing from her fall. She wore a dirty cream dress. It had once been floor length with long sleeves, but now it came down to cover the top of her thighs but left her exposed from almost halfway down her thighs. The sleeves of the dress had been ripped off and parts of the bodice and also been torn away, exposing a large part of her stomach. The untorn side was covered with black blood from where the stone had impaled her._

_She heard someone move closer to her from behind and whirled around. The man who had moved took a startled step back. She once bright blue eyes were icy blue and she could feel her fangs begin to protrude. She turned slowly on the spot, looking at all the soldiers before refocusing on the young boy. She felt something for him, probably just sympathy, but there was something else too, but she didn't know why._

"_Step away an__d no one gets hurt," she ordered; her voice harsh. A few of the men flinched at her tone, but no one moved._

"_You don't want to do this, let me go," she said, her voice strong and confident. She knew that these men weren't experienced in hunting people, then killing them. She hoped that she could talk her way out of this without any further loss of life, but she knew that would be a miracle._

"_We…we can't," one of the men spoke up. She turned her head to face the brave man who had spoken back to her. She took a few steps towards him and sniffed._

"_You…you're braver than the rest, yet you fear me almost more than any other I have met. You don't know anything about me do you?" she addressed the soldier. He looked scared at the fact that she knew who had spoken when she was looking the other way. He shook his head at her question._

"_You are right in fearing me, but not in hunting me. I am no threat to you! I have never harmed any of you, so why do you hunt me like some deer or rabbit? Because your leader who is too afraid to come for me himself sent you! I don't want to hurt any of you, but I will if you don't let me go," she spoke with authority. She looked at the man in front of her who was now visibly shaking. Suddenly she swung around and launched herself at one of the men behind her._

_She wrapped her hand around his throat, pressing so that he struggled to breathe._

"_You think it's funny? To force someone to run for their life? To laugh at someone when they are scared?" She glared at the man and squeezed his throat tighter, cutting off his airway. She bared her fangs at him and made a move for his neck before letting him go and stepping away. The man fell to the ground and grabbed his throat, gasping in air._

"_That was a warning. Now, let…me…go," she breathed, each word promising something if she didn't get her way. No one moved. "I was hoping it wouldn't come to this," she shrugged her shoulders and again attacked the same man she had threatened before. She bared her fangs as she moved towards him. Before he had a chance to grab his sword she had sunk her fangs into his throat and had drained him. She let go of his lifeless body and stepped back into the circle, allowing some of the blood to drip down her chin and onto the ground._

_The men looked horrified. They had never seen a vampire attack before. She looked around at them all and slowly licked the blood off her chin._

"_You have one more chance before you all end up like him," she pointed at the fallen soldier whose face was contorted into a look of pain and fright. She glared at them menacingly. Suddenly the sound of branches breaking filled her ears._

"_Ahh…and the great fearless ones arrive," she laughed. The soldiers looked at her; they couldn't hear anything. She raised her hand and pointed behind the men she was facing. Some bravely turned their backs on her and looked where she pointed. Sure enough, within minutes more soldiers arrived; but these ones had dealt with her kind before, they were tougher and harder to scare._

_The new soldiers pushed through the men and forced their way into the front of the circle. One soldier pushed through so that he stood inside the circle with her._

"_Adrasteia," he spat, "I would've thought that 'Persephone' or 'Tisiphone' would've suited you better," he laughed. She cringed at hearing her name coming from his lips. When she had left her home she changed her name from Briseis, to Iliana, then finally to Adrasteia._

"_Oh, that's right, that's not your name is it, I forgot, it's Briseis," he grinned menacingly. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself._

"_It's Adrasteia," she corrected him. He laughed at her again and his men laughed with him. The young men who first captured her didn't laugh; they remained staring at her; frightened._

_The man looked over at the body on the ground._

"_Looks like Pyrrhus got on your nerves," he laughed._

"_Just a little," she replied coldly. "Why do you want me Thanatos?"_

"_Why do I want you? Let's see shall we? You escaped from Leander's prison, killed his guards, threatened his family, humiliated him, torched his palace, shall I continue?" Thanatos snarled. He took a step closer to her. She stepped back, closer to the boy she had seen earlier._

"_I never did those things! You charge me with crimes I did not commit! You have no right to trap me!" she yelled. She glanced behind her at the young boy who kept his eyes on her, for a moment, her gaze softened. Thanatos saw this moment of tenderness and it gave him an idea._

_Thanatos stepped around her and headed for the young boy. She saw him and raced ahead of him putting herself in between Thanatos and the boy._

"_Let me go," she ordered. Thanatos laughed and stepped around her. He drew his sword and aimed it at the boy. He stepped closer and drew back the sword ready to strike. The young boy stood still, praying to the Gods._

_Just as Thanatos struck she stepped in front of the boy and the sword impaled her right shoulder. She pushed the boy to the ground; keeping him away from the blade. She cried out in pain as the sword split her flesh. Blood gushed out around the sword. Thanatos laughed and pushed her to the ground, leaving his sword imbedded in her. She closed her eyes as the pain overwhelmed her._

"_Come, she is done with," he ordered the men. The soldiers slowly turned away from her and began walking back down the main path. She groaned quietly in pain. The young boy whom she had saved pushed himself up off the ground. His left arm was broken from the fall, but he still crawled over to her._

"_Thank you," he whispered. As he moved to stand she reached out her hand. Her fingers brushed against his arm and he looked down. He thought she was dead, and was surprised to see her looking up at him._

"_Take…take it…out," she struggled to get the words out. She would've done it herself but the blood loss stole her strength. The young boy looked up at Thanatos who was organising his men and bragging about how many he killed that day. The boy looked down at her again and reached his good hand out and carefully pulled the sword from the wound. Instantly the blood stopped flowing out and the wound began to heal. Within seconds there was no sign of the wound. _

_She sat up quietly and reached out her hand to the young boy._

"_What's your name?" she whispered. She kept her eyes on Thanatos; watching his every move._

"_Ph…Phoebus," he replied nervously. He kept his voice to a whisper as well._

"_Phoebus, means bright and pure, it suits you," she smiled. "I can fix your arm, but first I need to do something. Can you wait here for me?" she asked. Phoebus nodded._

_She stood up silently and walked quickly over to Thanatos. She stood inches from his back and waited. Thanatos turned around when he saw one of his men point behind him in shock. It was then that she struck. She placed one hand on his shoulder, the other on his head. She violently pushed his head to the side and bit into his neck. She pulled away roughly, tearing away a piece of flesh. Thanatos cried out in pain and fruitlessly tried to hit her. She easily dodged his pitiful blows and sunk her teeth into his throat again, this time draining him._

_She let his body fall to the ground when she felt the last of his life leave his body. She spat out the blood in her mouth and turned to his men._

"_Go!" she ordered. The men quickly scattered into the trees. She wiped the blood from her face and stepped over Thanatos and back to Phoebus. She knelt down beside him._

"_What are you?!" he cried in shock. She looked down at the ground and pushed a piece of hair out of her eyes._

"_That's not important. What is important is fixing your arm," she stood up and offered him her hand. "Trust me, I won't hurt you," she smiled at him. He reached out tentatively and took her hand, allowing her to help him to stand._

"_I'm sorry about your arm, I didn't think, I just couldn't let him kill you," she apologised._

"_It's ok. Thank you for saving me. I wonder why he attacked me? He was after you," Phoebus replied. They began walking into the trees in the opposite direction of the soldiers._

"_He saw me look at you," she answered. _

"_But you looked at all of us,"_

"_I did, but, I felt a connection with you when I first saw you, maybe he saw that in my eyes,"_

"_A connection? How? I've never met you," he questioned. She helped him step over a large fallen tree._

"_I had a son once, he was your age, you remind me of him," she confessed._

"_A son? What happened to him?"_

"_He…he died…" she replied simply._

Natalie woke with a start. She hadn't thought about that day in many, many years. She sat up and looked down at the blanket around her.

"Thanks Mick," she smiled. She wiped some sweat off her brow and took a deep breath. She had always tried to ignore her past; some of it was so terrible that she wanted to forget it had ever happened. She had done many things she wasn't proud of, but saving Phoebus' life was one of the few things she would do again in a heartbeat.

She rarely spoke of her past, and she even more rarely dreamt about it. She didn't understand why she was now starting to think about these things again when she hadn't thought of them in over sixty years. She sighed and swung her legs off the bed. She moved over to her suitcase and pulled out her night gown.

It was a cool night, but she didn't care as she removed her clothing and folded them neatly and sat them inside her suit case. She pulled the thin gown over her head and plaited her hair. She closed the curtains then climbed into the bed and settled down to sleep again.

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**Ok I wasn't going to put this in but I will anyway. I thought I might give the meanings of the names I used as I feel that they help to say something about the character so here they are:**

**Adrasteia: _war goddess_**

**Persephone: _presumed to mean "To destroy" or "to murder", though it's true meaning is unknown. It is thought to be related to the Greek 'pertho' "to destroy" and 'phone' "murder". Persephone was also the wife of Hades, ruler of the Underworld._**

**Tisiphone: _means "avenging murder". Tisiphone was one of the Furies in Greek Mythology._**

**Briseis: _meaning unknown (I just like it and I love the character in the movie Troy)_**

**Iliana: _means "from Troy"_**

**Thanatos:_ means "death"_**

**Pyrrhus:_ means "flame-coloured" "red"_**

**Leander:_ means "lion of a man"_**

**Phoebus:_ means "bright/pure"_**


	15. Fresh Kill

**A/N: Ok so last chapter was well received and I got some really great reviews about it which makes me really happy :) I must warn you that this chapter is a little violent, but nothing gruesome or anything. And there also is what some would class as strong course language.**

**The rating will be going up in chapter 17, but I think that you'll all like why :)**

**This one is for last chapters reviewers: shell36799, ImaSupernaturalCSI, moonjat54, and pkmoise.**

**On with the story!**

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The sun glared through the open window and straight onto the hard bed where the young woman lay. Her hands were tied to the bed head above her head, and her legs were tied to the foot of the bed. The gag in her mouth rubbed against her lips, cutting them. The ropes around her wrists and ankles left large cuts, some almost to the bone.

She groaned when the sunlight hit her face. It meant that they would come back, and then she would have to endure more of their torture. She turned her head away from the window and stared at the door. Within seconds the door opened and in stepped two masked men. The first of the men held a sharp knife and a metal rod. The second carried a box of matches and some sticks.

"Hello missed us?" the first man smirked. He walked so that he stood opposite her head and hovered the knife over her stomach, laughing. The second man moved to the fireplace and placed the sticks in it. He struck a match and lit the sticks on fire. When the flames were right, he took the metal rod off the first man and sat the tip in the fire. He then sat back and watched his partner tease the woman. He forgot to keep his hand on the rod, keeping it in the fire, and the rod fell out and landed on the mat, burning it.

"Fuck!" he cursed.

"Jesus-fucking-Christ Mitch! I tell you to do one thing! One fucking thing and you fuck it up!" the man yelled. He waved his arm and the knife lightly cut her stomach.

"Sorry Col, I guess I just got distracted," Mitch apologised. He picked up the rod and sat it back in the fire, this time he kept his eyes and mind on his job.

"Thank you!" Col said. He turned his attention back to the woman. He ran his free hand over her chest, fondling her breasts. She squirmed under his hands, desperately trying to pull herself away from him. He laughed at her the pressed the knife into her stomach, drawing blood in a long line. She cried out through the gag at the sudden pain.

"It's ready," Mitch announced. He carefully picked up the rod and handed it to Col.

"Now, I'm gonna remove the gag, and you're gonna tell us what we wanna know, or else it's more pain for you," Col told the woman. He handed the knife to Mitch and used his free hand to pull away her gag.

"F….fuck you," she breathed. Col grinned and pressed the hot end of the rod into her stomach, causing her to scream in agony.

"Now, where, is, Adrasteia?" he asked again. She took a deep breath.

"I don't know who you're talking about," she replied as calmly as she could.

"Wrong answer," he smiled sadistically and again pressed the heated rod into her flesh. This time she didn't scream; her body flinched, but she just bit her lip and continued to stare at him.

"Now tell me where she is!" Col yelled. The woman smiled at him and shook her head.

"Never," she grinned. Col dragged the rod across her stomach and up between her breasts. The pain was excruciating but she still didn't make a sound.

"Ok, you asked for it," he said, fake sadness in his voice. He turned and nodded to Mitch who stepped forward. He raised the knife over his head and plunged it into her heart. The blow should've killed her, but when he pulled it out, she was still breathing. The wound in her chest healed, as had the burn marks and other stab wounds.

"Holy shit!" he muttered. He had never seen anyone heal like that before. He stepped back from the woman, dropping the knife on the bed.

"I suppose I did," she said. Suddenly she pulled her arms and the ropes snapped, she did the same with her feet. She looked away from the men for a second as she used her teeth to cut through the ropes binding her hands. When she turned back to Col and Mitch her eyes were white and she had fangs protruding from her mouth. She hissed at them, baring her teeth, then attacked.

She launched herself at Mitch, knocking him to the ground. She sank her teeth into his neck and fed on his blood till she had drained him. She momentarily forgot about Col, which would prove to be a costly mistake. Col grabbed the knife off the bed and swung it at her back. It made contact with her shoulders and she pulled away from Mitch's limp form. She whirled around and glared at Col.

"Ow," she said sarcastically. She launched herself at Col, but he was too quick. He stepped back, avoiding her, then swung the knife again, this time he hit her neck, but the force of the blow wasn't hard enough to decapitate her, all it did was stun her.

She was a new vampire, only recently turned, so she wasn't as strong and fast as most, but she was still stronger and faster than humans. She flew at Col, her nails scratching his arm, drawing blood. He swore at the pain, but never looked away from her.

He had dealt with a vampire before, but he didn't suspect Marie Cutchinova to be one. He swung out with the knife again; this time when the knife hit her neck it severed her head from her shoulders. Marie's body crumpled to the floor, blood seeping out the new wound.

Col dropped the knife on the floor and wiped the sweat off his face. He went to the window and opened it, letting the cool air outside fill the room. He turned back to the bodies. He had to get rid of them. He grabbed Mitch by the ankles and dragged him to the window. He sat him on the window ledge, and then sent him flying with an almighty shove. Mitch's body hit the ground with a sickening thud.

Col then grabbed Marie's ankles and dragged the headless body to the window, where she too was pushed out. He turned away from the window and closed it as well as the curtains. He moved to where Marie's head lay and picked it up by the hair, she smiled at it, before sitting it in the middle of the bed. He picked up the rod and knife, and then left the room.


	16. Another Hit

**A/N: Ok here's the 16th installment, wow this is really getting quite long, especially for me, and I still have much more to come! **

**Again thank you to all my reviewers!**

**This one is for last chapters lone reviewer ImaSupernaturalCSI.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Mick awoke and stretched. He glanced at the clock above the fireplace; it was midnight. He stood up and walked into the kitchen and poured himself a drink. He carried it back with him into the living room. He flopped onto the couch and thought about the case.

He didn't know what to do. He had one murder and five missing people, as well as threat letters, and to top it all off, vampire hunters. He had no leads so far, and unless someone died and their body was left at the scene, he wasn't likely to get any anytime soon. Suddenly his phone rang. He put his glass on the table and picked up his mobile.

"Mick St. John," he said as he flipped his phone open and put it to his ear. He didn't remember to look at the screen to see who was calling.

"Mick, there have been a couple of bodies found at an old motel, I think you might want to check it out," Guillermo hurriedly stated.

"Thanks, if you give me the address I'll head down there," Mick replied. He grabbed a pen and wrote the address on his hand. He thanked Guillermo again and hung up. He thought for a moment about waking Natalie and Josef up and taking them with him, but he figured that he should just let them sleep.

Quietly he slipped on his coat and grabbed his car keys. As he left he set the alarm.

It took fifteen minutes for Mick to reach the motel. He parked his Mercedes out the front of the building and stepped out of his car; taking in his surroundings. The motel was really just a run down multi-storey building with rooms to let. It was made of brown brick and had several large cracks running up its walls. The windows were dirty and very few had curtains.

Mick shook his head and walked around the side of the building and into the alleyway beside it. He breathed in and was hit with the strong scent of fresh blood; both human and vampire, the vamp was newly turned, or so it smelt. He followed the scent until two bodies came into sight. The bodies were a mess. They looked as if they had been pushed out a window, as their blood spatter the cement, as well as bits of bone that have shattered on impact.

One of the bodies, the female of the two, was missing its head. He looked around trying to spot the head, but it clearly wasn't near the body. The female was the vampire, but without the head he couldn't tell how old she was.

The other body was a male, and he was definitely human. By the amount of blood around the neck, Mick could tell that the man had probably been attacked by the vampire. He closed his eyes and breathed in. The scene showed him very little of the past, but it did show the bodies falling from a fifth storey window.

He took a step back from the bodies and looked up at the motel. He spotted the window that the bodies had fallen from. He looked around to make sure no one could see him and he jumped. He grabbed the window ledge and swung himself onto it. Crouching, he worked the window till it opened then he slipped inside.

The first thing he saw was the head in the middle of the bed. The smell of blood was overwhelming in this small, musky room. He covered his mouth and nose trying to block the smell. He walked slowly around the room, looking at the large patches of blood on the floor. He breathed in slightly and was shown the horrors of the early hours of the morning. He saw the female vampire jump off the bed and kill the young man, and the other man who she fought, but who eventually beheaded her.

He glanced at the mat and saw the burn mark. He shook his head and turned back to the head. The vampire's face was contorted into an expression of realisation, as though she hadn't originally known that vampire's could be beheaded. Her fangs were still clearly visible. By the look of her fangs he would say that she wasn't even a year old in terms of being a vampire. He shook his head again and pulled out his mobile.

He dialled the Cleaner's number and she picked up on the first ring.

"Cleaner," she answered.

"It's Mick St. John. I have a couple of bodies and a scene I need you to clean for me," Mick told her. He heard her laugh.

"Being sloppy Mick?" she joked. She knew that he never had live feedings, but she still liked to tease him when he called for her services.

"No, a vamp's been killed and she took someone down with her. We can't afford for the police to see these bodies," he replied. He gave her the address and the position of the room.

"Ok, we'll be there in five," she said as she hung up. Before Mick left he took a photo of the head with the camera on his phone. He had a hunch that this vamp might just be one of Natalie's missing staff.


	17. Mutual Attraction

**A/N: Here is chapter seventeen! Wow! So far already! I really need to knuckle down and write some more I think!**

**Ok I must warn you, this chapter has an M rating for which the reason will become apparent within the first few paragraphs. I know that there are some out there who want something like this to happen, and it just so happens that it does.**

**I must admit, that this story is not going at all how I planned and it seems to have taken a mind of its own. I am suffering a slight case of writers block at the moment, so after this chapter, the next few might be pretty bad but I promise to work on them :) (Just so you know, sometimes reviews can be really helpful in curing writers block, or so I have been told)**

**Thank you to all my reviewers.**

**This one is for last chapters reviewers: Sci fi fan30, moonjat54, ImaSupernaturalCSI, and Lennon Drop.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Josef woke slowly. He pushed the freezer lid open and sat up. His eyes took a moment to adjust to being opened before they took in his surroundings. He panicked for a moment when he realised that he wasn't in his freezer, then remembered that Mick had offered him his freezer for the night. He grinned at the memory of the look on Mick's face as he stormed out of the room and up the stairs.

He climbed slowly out of the freezer and pulled on his pants, leaving his shirt on the floor. He exited the room, closing the door behind him. When he entered the living room he found it empty. He just shrugged his shoulders and headed to the kitchen. He poured himself a glass of blood and downed it in one. He really wished that Mick would take to having his meals live, the blood tasted better. As he placed the empty glass in the sink he caught sight of Natalie's door.

He walked silently over to her door and opened it slightly, peering in. Natalie lay on her back, her eyes closed. She looked peaceful. Josef smiled and went to close the door again but stopped. Natalie had begun moaning.

"No…..no…please….no…..don't….please…he's just a boy…." She moaned. Suddenly she began thrashing around as though she was trying to hit an invisible opponent. Josef quickly entered the room and sat on the bed beside her.

"Shhhh…it's ok," he soothed. He placed a cool hand on her forehead, lightly stroking her hair. She stopped thrashing and returned to peaceful sleep. Josef stood up and headed quietly to the door.

"Wait," she whispered. He barely heard her. He turned around and saw her sitting up looking at him. "Don't go," she patted the bed beside her. Josef looked at her for a moment as if considering whether she was really there or not and if she was serious. He approached the bed and sat down. Natalie reached out her hand and clasped his.

"Thank you," she smiled softly. Her thumb stroked his knuckles gently.

"For what?" he asked. He loved the feel of her soft skin against his.

"For everything; for being there when I needed someone. You'll never know how much that means to me," she looked down at the bed for a moment then looked back at him. She leaned forward so that she was inches from his face, "Thank you," she whispered. Her lips brushed lightly against his. She pulled away and smiled. He smiled back then leaned into her and captured her lips in a gentle kiss. She was surprised at first but returned his kiss.

Their lips melted intimately together as the passion between them grew. Boldly his hand slipped around her waist and pulled her towards him. His other hand wound itself in her hair, pulling strands loose from the plait. Her arms went around his neck as she pulled him down to lie with her on the bed.

Josef couldn't believe what was happening. Here he was in his best friend's house, kissing a beautiful woman. Somewhere in the back of his mind a little voice told him to stop before it was too late, before they went too far or someone came in and saw them, but the feelings in his heart told him otherwise.

His tongue traced her luscious lips, tempting them to open. She gasped when his hand slid down her back and under the hem of her nightgown. Josef took this moment to slip his tongue between her parted lips. Natalie moaned softly as his tongue began to stroke hers. She wriggled underneath him, putting pressure in all the right places. His hand caressed her thigh just below her pants. Her skin was like soft velvet, so smooth he never wanted to take his hands off her.

Suddenly he pulled away from her lips and began planting loving kisses down her throat. She moaned when he began to gently suck on the skin at the base of her neck, leaving a purple mark. His hand slid up her leg onto her waist, pulling the hem of her gown with it. He slipped the gown over her hips and helped her wriggle out of it. When the garment was removed from her body he tossed it onto the floor, not bothering to check where it landed.

He kissed his way down her collarbone to the valley between her breasts. She moaned and writhed beneath him as his cool lips made their way to her right breast. She arched up into him as his lips enclosed around her nipple. Her hands ran over his back, caressing every inch.

"Josef," she moaned. He smiled against her breast and continued his ministrations.

"Josef…" she mumbled, louder. Her hands pulled his head away from her breast, forcing him to look at her.

"I'm sorry….I don't know what came over me," he began to apologise, thinking that she didn't want it too. He began to move away from her but she grabbed his arm.

"Too much clothing," she smiled. He laughed and moved his hands to his trousers.

"No, let me," Natalie pushed his hands away and knelt before him on the bed. She smiled devilishly up at him as her hands slid down his torso and onto the waist band of his trousers. Her fingers hooked around the waist band and she slowly began to pull down; revealing him inch by inch. He moaned as she freed him from the confines of the trousers and she laughed. She pushed the trousers down his legs as far as she could before he stepped out of them. He moved to climb on the bed but she stopped him with a hand on his chest.

He looked at her quizzically but stilled his movement. She smiled and leaned in; placing a delicate kiss on his chest. She glanced up at him and saw him open his mouth in surprise at her lips on his skin. She smiled against him and placed kisses across his torso, down to his naval. When she reached his groin she stopped and pulled away. Josef groaned and opened his eyes.

Natalie smiled and pulled him onto the bed with her. He rolled so that he had her pinned to the bed. His lips crashed against hers in a fierce kiss. Her hands roamed his back; digging her nails in every now and then. He slipped one hand down her stomach to the elastic of her underwear. With one quick movement he slid the garment down her long legs and flung them across the room.

She smiled and laughed as he positioned himself between her silky thighs. He kissed her loving as he pushed into her. They both moaned at the feeling. Josef pulled out then thrust back in; Natalie meeting his movement. He thrust into her at a steady pace and she met him thrust-for-thrust. He kissed her passionately with every thrust.

She began to moan as she approached her climax. Her nails dug into his shoulders drawing blood. The blood trickled through her fingers. He felt her tighten around him and thrust harder into her, pushing her over the edge. She cried out his name as she floated down from the cloud of ecstasy. He continued to thrust into her until he felt his own climax approach. As he thrust into her one final time he sunk his fangs into her neck; sucking gently.

At first Natalie revelled in the feeling of him drink from her but suddenly she pulled her neck away from him.

"No! You mustn't do that!" she cried. He looked at her; perplexed. He didn't understand why she didn't want him drinking from her. He pulled out of her slowly and collapsed on the bed beside her; staring at the roof. The moment had gone from romantic to tense in a second.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have snapped. It's just…it's not safe for you to drink my blood," she apologised; she too was staring at the ceiling. He turned his face to her.

"It's ok….it's just….why isn't it safe? Vampires can drink vampire blood," he asked. She gulped and closed her eyes.

"My….my blood….it can turn vampires into humans. I don't know why and I don't know how all I know is that it does," she struggled to get the words out. Josef gasped.


	18. Another Mystery

**A/N: Ok I got a good response for last chapter, with most people liking it, and especially a shirtless Josef (rolls eyes)**

**I also noticed that I keep creating mysteries so I am going to try and solve them sometime soon, I promise.**

**This chapter is probably a bit of a let down considering last chapter and the whole mystery at the end, but I know what I'm doing (I think).**

**Thanks to all my loyal reviewers!**

**This one is for last chapters reviewers: moonjat54, Sci fi fan30, and ImaSupernaturalCSI.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Mick walked into the apartment and threw his coat on the rack before entering the kitchen. He glanced at the glass in the sink but thought nothing of it. He grabbed his own glass and poured himself a large glass of blood. As he raised it to his lips he heard a voice; Natalie's voice.

"My….my blood….it can turn vampires into humans. I don't know why and I don't know how all I know is that it does," her voice was strained. He lowered the glass, listening intently.

"What?! Do you mean that I'm….I'm….human?" Josef's voice came from the room. Mick raised his eyebrow; what was Josef doing in there?

"Possibly, but you didn't take much so there's a large possibility that you'll be fine," she replied. Mick heard the bed creak as someone stood up. He then heard footsteps as someone began pacing.

"Possibly? That's really comforting! I've been a vampire for the last 400 years! I don't want to be human again!" Josef ranted. Mick heard the bed creak again.

"I'm sorry ok, I didn't expect you to bite my neck; I haven't been with someone in many, many years, more than you have been alive! Yes, that's right; I'm older than you are, much, much older!" Natalie replied. Mick set his glass on the bench and approached the door that was slightly ajar. He peeked through the gap. Natalie and Josef stood with their bare backs to the door. Her hand was on his arm. He turned to look at her.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to freak out on you," he apologised. He raised his hand and gently stroked her cheek. Mick had never seen Josef so caring, and he had known him for almost fifty years.

"It's ok, I should've stopped you, I knew the risk," Natalie shook her head softly. "You should see if you're human, if you are we can turn you back if you really want," she softly added.

"You're right, we should see," Josef nodded his head. He moved away from her and closed his eyes. Mick stood in the doorway in complete shock; his best friend may have been turned into a human again. He watched as Josef contorted his face in concentration. Suddenly his eyes flew open. They were icy blue. He opened his mouth and brought his hand up, feeling his teeth. He smiled when he felt the fangs. He turned back to Natalie.

"Thank god, you didn't have enough to turn you back," she sighed. Josef smiled again. He stepped towards her and wrapped his arms around her. Mick couldn't believe what he was hearing. Here was the one thing he always wanted: a cure to his curse. He hated what he was, he repulsed himself and saw nothing more than a monster when he saw his own reflection. He only thanked his curse for the fact that he could live forever and that thanks to his vampirism he had watched Beth grow from a young girl into a beautiful woman. His heart thudded in his chest as he thought about the possibility of being human again, of tasting food again, of being able to walk through the park during the day and feeling the sun on his skin without risking death. This was everything he wanted.

"Yes, thank god. Now, how about trying out some more of what we were doing before? This time I won't bite you," he grinned at her, his teeth and eyes normal again. Natalie blushed as he lowered his lips to hers and caught her in a passionate kiss. Suddenly the doorbell rang. The couple pulled apart and looked over to the door. They just caught sight of Mick walking away from the door.

Even though they both had superior sense, they were both too focused to notice that they had an audience.

* * *

**Hey, I was wondering, does anyone want some Mick/Beth romance? I was thinking about it but I'm not sure. I mean we can't deny the fact that in the show they have obviously fallen for each other, though it seems like nothing will ever happen between them...so what do you think??**


	19. An Idea

**A/N: Ok sorry about the wait, I wasn't waiting for reviews, I was waiting until I had written chapter twenty before posting this one.**

**This chapter is also a bit of let down and I'm not completely happy with it, but I don't know what else to do to get the story where I want it to be.**

**Just a little note: classes have started up for me again, which really cuts down on my writing time, but I'm writing as much as I can so as to avoid long breaks between updates. (See aren't I nice?)**

**Anyway, thank you to all my loyal reviewers, you guys really keep me writing this story and give me a reason to finish it.**

**This one is for last chapters reviewers: ImaSupernaturalCSI, moonjat54, and Lennon Drop.**

**Oh, one more thing before I let you read this chapter, I was thinking about it and I've decided that I might have a Mick/Beth romance somewhere in here, I just need to find a good place.**

**This story will probably be drawing to a close in maybe four or five chapters, depending on how long it takes me to write the rest of this. And you all better be prepared because I'm going to be answering pretty much all the questions that I've made.**

**Thank you all,**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Beth stood impatiently outside Mick's apartment, glancing down the hall every few seconds. When the door opened she didn't bother with greetings and just pushed her way into the room.

Mick closed the door behind her and followed her as she made her way into the living room. She threw her hand bag onto the couch and turned to face him. Her eyes were red and puffy and she looked like she was about to burst into tears; which she did. Tears fell down her cheeks as she began to cry. She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around him. He awkwardly placed his arms around her body, patting gently.

"Beth….Beth, what's wrong?" he asked. She pulled away from him so that she could look into his eyes. She saw nothing but concern and something she couldn't name.

"I….I left him…..I left Josh," she whispered. She wiped her nose with her hand and sniffed. Mick pulled her against him as she cried again. He moved them to the couch and together they sat down. She snuggled into his arms, revelling in the warmth he created inside her.

Mick forgot what he had seen in the bedroom only minutes before and focused solely on Beth. He had dreamed of holding her in his arms for longer than he would ever admit. He rocked her gently until her tears subsided. She pulled away from him slightly and looked at him.

"I'm sorry, I had no idea where to go and I got in my car and found myself here," Beth began to ramble.

"It's ok. Really, it is. I'm sorry about Josh," Mick stopped her. He hadn't seen her like this before. She never rambled on like this.

"Thank you. You shouldn't be sorry, it was a long time coming," Beth shook her head sadly. Her relationship with Josh hit a huge bump when she 'met' Mick. She felt an instant connection to the mysterious Mick St. John, and that really got to Josh. He had never felt challenged by any other man for Beth's affection, but when she became friendly with Mick, Josh noticed that Beth grew more distant. She put their relationship on the backburner and focused on Mick until he was the only thing that seemed to matter to her. She never meant to hurt Josh, but she also never meant to fall in love with Mick. When she woke up this morning, she knew that she had to end it; it wasn't fair to string Josh along when she was in love with someone that wasn't him. It was one of the hardest things she had ever done, but she knew that she had to do it.

She didn't find it hard to tell him that she wanted to break up; it was his face that got to her. He was smiling and happy when she entered the room, but when she began to speak his smile disappeared and tears filled his beautiful eyes. She told him that it wasn't him; that it was her, but he didn't buy it. She also told him that he deserved someone better than her; someone who could be all the things he wanted. She told him that she loved him, and that she always would, but that the love she felt for him wasn't enough to keep her faith in their relationship.

It broke her heart to watch as he walked dejectedly out of the room; his head hung low. She had stayed in the room for a few minutes just thinking about what had happened. Then she got in her car and drove and found herself at Mick's apartment.

She didn't need to say much to Mick about how she was feeling; he sensed it. He pulled her against him and kissed her hair; hugging her. There wasn't anything in the world that Mick wouldn't do for her. He would willingly give his life if it meant that she would keep hers. He would pull the sun from the sky if it made her happy. It destroyed him when she was sad.

"I…I…thank you," she stuttered. She didn't know what to say. She had shown up unannounced at his apartment, broken down in tears, and now she felt downright awkward. "I should go," she pulled away from him and stood up. Mick grabbed her hand as she stepped away from him.

"You don't have to," he whispered. She looked down at his hand; then sat on the couch beside him again.

"How's the case going?" she asked after a minute of uncomfortable silence.

"Ok, I haven't got many leads so far, but I did find two bodies today, one of which I think was another of Natalie's staff. I have a photo of the face, I'm just waiting to show her," he replied. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and showed the photo to Beth.

"Ouch! Who killed her? Do you know?" she cringed at the sight of the head on the bed.

"Vampire hunters, I'm almost positive. They're after Natalie, they seem to think that she has something they want and they're not stopping at anything to get her," Mick said as he put the phone back in his pocket.

"Vampire hunters? I thought they were just in the stories,"

"They're real all right. And they've been around since….well….a very long time anyway. Over the centuries they have developed new weapons to hurt us. Often vampire hunters come from a long line of hunters. I think the ones after Natalie might have quite a history when it comes to vamp's. This is what really worries me. If these hunters know a lot about vampires; then Natalie is in serious danger no matter where she is. The only up side is that these hunters don't seem to know what Natalie looks like," Mick explained, but by the look on Beth's face it seemed that he had only confused her.

"Ok….so Natalie is being hunted by some people who don't know what she looks like? How are you going to catch them then?" Beth tried to understand this new information.

"Yeah, that's pretty much it. I'm not sure at the moment, but I think we might have to use some bait to try and draw them out," Mick replied.

"Bait? You mean use someone as a kind of decoy?" Beth raised her eyebrows in surprise. She couldn't see Mick ever putting someone in danger like that; although with Mick around the person would be pretty safe.

"Yeah, I'm not sure I'll do that. We'll just have to wait and see how things play out for the time being," he nodded. A silence fell between them again. This time it was interrupted by Natalie entering the room.

"Hey," she smiled. She wore a floor length Grecian style sun dress. It was tight around the bust and flowed out loosely over her stomach. It had elegant spaghetti straps and was deep purple in colour and absolutely gorgeous.

"Hi," Beth and Mick replied in unison. Natalie ran a hand through her blonde hair and walked into the kitchen.

"So, how have you been Beth?" Natalie asked as she grabbed a glass of water and sat down in the chair opposite the couch.

"I've been very well, a little stressed as of late, but other than that I've been fine," Beth smiled. She watched as Natalie raised the glass to her lips and took a sip. She still couldn't understand how Natalie could eat and drink human food when she was a vampire.

"Stressed? I hope that has nothing to do with me," she sat the glass on the table and glanced towards her bedroom door. She could feel Josef moving around in there.

"No, I ah….I broke up with my boyfriend," Beth replied.

"Oh, I'm sorry, it's never nice to lose someone you love," Natalie said kindly. "I just remembered I have some things at my hotel room that I have to go and get."

"You can't go there, it's not safe," Mick told her, Beth nodded her agreement.

"Look, I'll be fine; I'll be in and out before they even know I was there. There are some things I need," Natalie shrugged off their concern.

"No, your staying here, I'll go and get the things," Mick shook his head firmly.

"And what do you think that'd look like to the hotel staff? I send a man to get women's things from my hotel room; that wouldn't look right. Plus, I own the hotel, I'll be perfectly safe," she smiled, trying to convince Mick to let her go.

"How about I go for you? It wouldn't look strange, and I'd like to do it," Beth offered.

"Ok, thanks, if someone else has to go for me, then I wouldn't want it to be anyone else; thanks," Natalie smiled, "I'll just go and get my key," with that she stood up and left the room.


	20. Followed

**A/N: Wow! 6 reviews for last chapter! That's a record for me! I see that I have some new reviewers here, so welcome! I'm really getting into the climax of the story, so I hope you all find it acceptable and that it answers all your questions!**

**Thank you to all my loyal reviewers!**

**And a special thanks to last chapters reviewers, this one is for you: moonjat54, shell36799, jjrenee85, scrappyearnhardt, ImaSupernaturalCSI, and Aria DeLoncray.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Beth walked slowly into the hotel. She checked three times that she had the right place. She approached the desk and waited for the receptionist to notice her.

"Hello, welcome to the Madedras, how may I help you?" the young woman behind the desk smiled as she recited the well rehearsed line. Beth could tell that the smile was fake; as was her happy sounding voice. The girl looked tired.

"Hi, I was wondering if you could direct me to room 409?" Beth smiled as she checked the paper in her hand.

"Uhh…there's no room 409, so you must mean suite 409," the woman replied, typing on the keyboard. Beth raised her eyebrows at the word 'suite'.

"Yeah, that must be it then," she muttered. The woman gave her directions to the room and Beth headed for the elevator. As she stepped in she was to busy marvelling at the hotel to notice the two men who had heard her at the desk and were now following her.

The elevator doors opened on the fifth floor and Beth stepped out, once again checking the address in her hand. She walked slowly along the hall until she found door 409. She inserted the key into the lock carefully, half expecting it to not open the door.

She opened the door and entered the room. She set the key on the table near the door and just stared at the room. She had never seen anything so amazing. She quickly turned her mind back to her task and headed towards the first door she saw. Luckily it was the bedroom.

She moved to the wardrobe and began putting things in the suitcase she found under the bed. She was just putting the final item in the suitcase when she heard a clicking noise. She turned away from the suitcase and walked to the door.

She looked out into the living room and saw two men walking around looking in rooms. She pulled her head back inside the room and pressed herself against the wall. She quietly closed the door and moved back to the suitcase. She kept her eyes on the door as she pulled out her mobile and dialled Mick's number.

"Mick," she whispered into the phone.

"Beth?" he replied. He sounded worried.

"Mick, there's someone else here," she said, keeping her voice low.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that there are other people here with me, and they aren't good," she told him. Her eyes grew wide and her heart rate picked up as she saw the door knob turn and the door slowly open.

"Mick, help me," she pleaded. She dashed around the bed and slid underneath it. She kept the phone pressed against her ear. From under the bed she could see the men as they walked around the room.

"Beth, stay where you are, I'll be there as soon as I can," Mick replied. She hung up the phone and hugged it to her chest. She knew that these men were after Natalie, and that meant that they were probably vampire hunters. She closed her eyes and said a quick prayer. She didn't know why she was praying, it wasn't like she was religious or anything, but she found comfort in asking for safety. Suddenly the covers around the bed were lifted and a man's face peered in at her.

"Hello Miss Constantine, we told you we would come for you," he sneered. Beth cringed at his voice. A hand grabbed her arm and she was roughly pulled from under the bed.


	21. Interrogation

**A/N: Ok again a great response to last chapter! Thank you! It really makes me even more eager to update when I know that I have reviewers! I'm planning on leaving a few cliffes in the next few chapters, though this one probably isn't one.**

**Thank you to all my loyal reviewers!**

**This one is for last chapters reviewers: jjrenee85, shell36799, Aria DeLoncray, xosummerxo, moonjat54, and ImaSupernaturalCSI.**

**Enjoy!**

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The man threw Beth into a chair and held her while his accomplice tied her hands and feet. Beth fought them both, but they were stronger than her and easily overpowered her.

"Now, give us the elixir," the man commanded. Beth stared at him.

"I don't know what you're talking about," she said firmly. She glanced at the other man. He was young, barely older than twenty. She presumed that this young man was the older ones son.

"Don't play coy with me. I know you have it," he growled. The younger man looked at her, and for a moment she could've swore that she saw sympathy in his eyes.

"I'm not, and I don't have it. I don't even know what _it_ is," she maintained eye contact and refused to back down. The man slapped her face, causing her head to turn sharply. She tasted the blood in her mouth but ignored it.

"You can't lie to me. I know all about you. I've done my research. You're the one, you're the vampire princess," he paced a circle around her. She tried to keep her eyes on him but couldn't so she settled for staring straight ahead.

"There's no such thing as a vampire princess, that's just a story," she mumbled. In her mind she saw Mick's smiling face, and that gave her strength. She didn't know what these men would do to her, and she didn't want to.

"So you know the story? Of course you do, it's about you after all. Now correct me if I make any mistakes but, weren't you a princess? You fell ill and your parents brought in everyone they could to save you, but none of them could. One priest cast a spell over you, which turned you into a vampire, and since then you have been hiding. I haven't figured out why you haven't passed on your elixir, but I know that you have turned others. Now tell me where it is!" he bellowed. His son cringed at his father's voice, so Beth kept her eyes on the son.

"What's your name?" she asked the young man. The man looked at his father then mumbled something. She smiled at him and he spoke again, louder.

"Jason," he said. He kept his eyes on Beth, never letting them stray to his father.

"Jason," she smiled, "You don't want to do this, I'm not the one you want, let me go, please," she tried to connect with him. She almost succeeded; she could see it in his eyes. He didn't want to keep her here. Suddenly the father slapped Jason's face. Jason stepped back from Beth and slunk into a corner, rubbing his face gently.

"Shut the fuck up!" the father bellowed. He turned away from his son and glared at Beth. "Now, give me the elixir!" he ordered. Beth shook her head defiantly. The man put his hand into his waistband and pulled out a gun. Beth would bet anything that the bullets were solid silver. She swallowed nervously, her eyes flicking to Jason.

Jason stood in the darkest corner of the room, his eyes locked on her. She could tell that he didn't want to be here, that he didn't think it right to keep a woman here against her will. She wanted to talk to him, to get him on her side, but she knew it was pointless; even if he was he had no power over his father. She lowered her gaze and focused on the carpet in front of her. She contemplated screaming, hoping that someone in a nearby room would help her, but that would also prove pointless. As even if someone did come running, Jason's father wouldn't have any qualms about killing someone. So, she was trapped.

"Don't make me use this on your pretty face, not to mention your _old_ face. Now, I'm sure that in your time you have seen pretty much everything there is to see. You've experienced more than anyone. And you hold the key to immortality. My family has hunted you for centuries, and now I have you. Give me the elixir," he waved the gun in her face as he spoke.

"I don't have it, and even if I did I wouldn't give it to you," she spat back. He aimed the gun at her foot and shot her. She screamed at the pain, tears filling her eyes before she could stop them.

"Peter! Leave her alone!" Jason cried out as Beth's face contorted in pain. Peter whirled around to face his son. He raised the gun and without hesitation fired a single shot into the boys shoulder.


	22. To the Rescue?

**A/N: Ok now we are getting to the good stuff! I warn you all that there are heaps of surprises coming really really soon!**

**Not much to say really except thank you to all my loyal reviewers, you guys make me really happy :)**

**This one is for jjrenee85, Aria DeLoncray, ImaSupernaturalCSI, and xosummerxo who reviewed last chapter.**

**Enjoy!**

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Mick, Josef, and Natalie tore down the road in Mick's Mercedes. Josef and Natalie had been with Mick when Beth called, and despite Mick's protesting, had joined him in going to the hotel. So far they had hit every red light going.

"Hurry up!" Mick cried out to no one in particular. He thumped his hand on the steering wheel in frustration. He didn't care if there had been an accident in front of them, all he cared about was Beth, and right now she wasn't safe.

He was kicking himself for letting her go for Natalie. He should've realised the danger and stopped her. He should've gone himself like he planned. He knew that these thoughts weren't making things better, but they were all he could think about.

Her smiling face flashed before his eyes as another wave of guilt crashed over him. The light turned green and he sped off. A few blocks later he hit another red light.

"This is hopeless! We'll hit every bloody red light going!" Mick groaned. He put his head in his hands and a lone tear slipped down his cheek. He hurriedly wiped it away with the back of his hand.

"Why don't we run? We can park the car somewhere and we'll get there twice as fast," Natalie suggested. She felt horrible. It was because of her that Beth was caught.

"Yeah Mick, that's about the best we can do at the moment," Josef agreed. Mick looked at the both for a moment before pulling the car out of the main stream of traffic and down an alley way.

They exited the car and Mick locked the doors.

"The hotel is twelve blocks from here," Natalie told them. Suddenly they were off and running as fast as they could. They moved so fast that the pedestrians on the sidewalk only noticed them if they clipped them on their way past. At first Mick was in the lead, but soon he was over taken by Natalie and Josef. Since they were older, Natalie and Josef could move faster than Mick.

"Wait, I know an even faster way," Natalie announced, stopping them after three blocks. Mick and Josef stopped in their tracks and turned to her, panting slightly. "Here, take my hands," she offered a hand to the both. They looked at her for a moment before grabbing the proffered hands. Natalie pulled them close to her and closed her eyes, her hands gripping theirs tightly.

"Hold on," she warned. Within seconds they were in the air and flying.

"How….what…..how….." Josef stammered as they soared through the sky. After only a minute of flying they landed outside the hotel.

"That was….how did you do that?" Mick asked as they walked into the hotel.

"I wanna learn that," Josef commented. Mick ignored his remark and looked at Natalie, encouraging her to answer.

"Like I said before, it's an incredibly long story, but it's just something I worked on," she replied. She smiled at the girl behind the desk and they made their way to the stairs. They sprinted up the stairs and entered the fifth floor. They didn't stop to admire the décor but made their way to door 409. Natalie reached a hand out to the door handle but stopped.

They heard scuffling inside and a gun shot.

"No!" Mick gasped.


	23. Too Late

**A/N: Ok now I get really mean in this one and you'll see why. I honestly didn't realise that the last one was a cliffhanger as I wrote this one straight after it. Anyway I hope that you all enjoy it. What I will ask you to do when you've finished this is tell me all the questions you want answered in the coming chapters, because I am positive that when I go through with writing the next few parts I will miss some answers simply because I didn't realise the questions were there, so that would be really great if you could do that for me (smiles sweetly).**

**This one is for last chapter's reviewers: scrappyearnhardt, moonjat54, xosummerxo, ImaSupernaturalCSI, and Sci fi fan30.**

**Enjoy!**

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Peter paced around Beth's chair, waving the gun as he ranted about her lying to him and how he was going to make her pay for it. Beth slumped forward in her chair, blood dripping from a cut on her forehead where he had hit her with the butt of the gun. Pain seared through her foot, and she had rope burns on her wrists and ankles.

Jason sat slumped against a wall, his head lolling about as he struggled to keep his consciousness. He had his left hand pressed against the bullet wound in his right shoulder applying pressure.

"I'm going to ask you one more time, give me the fucking elixir!" he yelled. He stopped pacing and stood in front of her. Beth closed her eyes and pulled her eyes up to his.

"I've told you, I don't know what you're talking about," she calmly replied. She was getting tired of him asking about this elixir.

"I've had enough of the fucking bull shit!" he roared. He aimed the gun at her chest and fired.

"No!" Jason pleaded but he was too late. The bullet tore into Beth's chest, imbedding itself in her heart. She moaned as her heart began to slow and blood seeped out of the wound. Her head fell forward as she lost the strength to keep it up.

Peter knew he had made a mistake the moment his finger pressed the trigger, but by then he couldn't take it back.

"Fuck!" he stomped his foot and put his hand to his head. Now his only chance of finding the elixir was gone, and there was no way he would ever find it now. He paced in front of Beth's dying form, occasionally glancing at her but mainly staring at the ground.

Suddenly the door burst open and three figures entered; two men and a woman. The first of the men raced over to Beth gently cupping her face with one hand as he used the other to untie her wrists. The other man and the woman stayed standing just inside the door. The man turned his head from side to side as if stretching it. Suddenly he flew at Peter, his hand wrapping around his throat as he slammed him against a wall.

The woman stood frozen, her eyes scanned the room. She saw Jason near the window and made her way over to him.

"Hey, come on, wake up," she urged gently. Jason moaned and slowly opened his eyes. He looked at her in fright.

"It's ok, my name's Natalie, I'm not going to hurt you," she smiled, "Now let me see that wound." She moved his hand out of the way carefully and examined the wound. While it wasn't fatal, it sure as hell was painful.

"I have to get this bullet out. Now it shouldn't hurt, but it will feel uncomfortable," she warned. He moved to say something but stopped. She smiled warmly and placed her hand over the wound. He felt a tingling in his shoulder, then immediate relief from the pain. Natalie pulled her hand away and showed him the bullet which now lay in her palm.

"How did you…." He began. He knew that she hadn't used her fingers or any tool to get it out, so how did she do it?

"Shhh…..it's magic," she replied, "Rest now," she smiled and stroked his hair as he fell to sleep. She stood up and looked at Josef. He had Peter pinned to the wall and was threatening him.

"….I swear I will make your life a living hell! Nothing and no one will be able to stop me! Do you hear me! Do you!" he roared angrily. Though he would never admit it, he had a soft spot for Beth. He squeezed his hand tighter, almost closing Peter's airway.

"Josef, maybe he knows where my staff are," Natalie placed a hand on his shoulder, forcing him to look at her.

"Right, where are they?" Josef questioned. He eased the pressure off Peter's throat.

"Where's who?" Peter gasped. The glint in his eyes told both Natalie and Josef that he was lying.

"You fucking bastard! You know who I'm talking about! The five innocent women you kidnapped from the Madedras building," Josef growled. He dug his nails into Peter's neck, drawing blood.

"Ok! Ok! I know who you're talking about! They…..they're at the old Mason building," he gasped. He could feel the blood dripping out to the wounds.

"Thank you," Josef replied sarcastically, then with a flick of his wrist, Peter was dead. He stepped away from the body and let it fall to the floor.

"Beth, Beth wake up," Mick pleaded. He gently patted Beth's cheek. He ignored the fact that he could no longer hear her heart. Tears fell silently from his eyes as he continued to try and wake her.

"Mick, Mick, let her go, she's gone," Josef said gently. He placed a hand on Mick's shoulder and tried to move him away.

"No! She….she's just….she's just sleeping…..she'll wake up…..she has to wake up!" he cried. He was usually a strong man who never let his emotions take over, but seeing the one he loved sitting in a chair with no life left in her body destroyed him. He untied her feet and pulled her into his lap. He sat on the floor rocking Beth's lifeless body, caressing her hair and whispering things into her hair.

A tear slipped down Josef's cheek as he watched his best friend mourn the loss of his mate. As much as he pretended to dislike Beth, he secretly liked her, she had personality. He shook his head sadly and sat down on the couch; putting his head in his hands.

Natalie stood in front of the window staring at Mick and Beth. She felt so guilty. If it wasn't for her, none of this would have happened. She stood as if she was frozen, her eyes glued on Beth's body. Suddenly she knew what she had to do.


	24. Revelations

**A/N: Ok, ok, I know I was mean to leave the last one on a cliff hanger for a couple of days but I needed to write this chapter, and since no one gave me any ideas as to what questions they want answered, I had to go with what I could think of.**

**Just so you all know, this is made entirely from my very strange and sometimes slightly morbid mind, and I own nothing but Natalie, Peter, Jason and of course the plot, basically anything you don't recognise from the show is mine.**

**Anyway thank you to all my loyal reviewers!**

**This one is for jjrenee85, ImaSupernaturalCSI, scrappyearnhardt, xosummerxo, moonjat54, and Aria DeLoncray who kindly reviewed last chapter and asked me to save Beth:)**

**I hope you all like this part and will stay with me as I eventually finish this rather long and confusing story.**

**Enjoy!**

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Natalie looked around the room for something sharp. She moved over to the mirror on the wall and punched it, letting the pieces fall to the ground. She pulled her fist away and watched as the blood disappeared as did the cuts. She searched through the broken mirror for a large piece. She selected the largest one and moved back to Mick and Beth.

"Give me her arm," she ordered. Mick looked up at her and gripped Beth's body tighter.

"I have to do this, it's the only way," she grabbed Beth's limp arm and sat it on her knee. Using the piece of mirror she carefully cut a line across Beth's wrist. She closed her eyes for a moment, and then sat her own left wrist on her knee. She flexed her hand, working her circulation.

Josef and Mick watched as Natalie ran the mirror along her flesh, cutting deep. She pressed the mirror into the wound to keep it open. She tilted her wrist over Beth's so that blood from her wrist dripped onto Beth's. Mick and Josef gasped as black liquid squirted from Natalie's wrist and mixed with the red liquid in Beth's wrist. Suddenly Natalie pulled away and dropped the mirror. Her arm healed instantly and she stared down at Beth.

"Come on," she urged. All eyes were trained on Beth as the cut on her wrist began to heal. The cut on her forehead disappeared, as did the wounds in her foot and chest. Suddenly she gasped for air and her eyes flew open. Natalie laughed a laugh of great relief. Mick looked down at Beth as she moved in his arms. He pulled her close to him and softly kissed her hair.

"How did you do that?" Josef asked. He stood staring at Natalie. Natalie looked up at him and stood. She took a few steps towards him but stopped when she saw that he was backing away from her.

"Please, let me explain," she looked from Mick and Beth, to Josef, and back. She turned away from them and walked to the window. She put her back to the window and faced them. She closed her eyes, tilted her head back, and stretched her arms out at her sides. A light breeze filled the room though there were no windows open. The breeze held comforting warmth and was welcomed by all those in the room.

Suddenly Natalie hovered two feet off the ground. The breeze picked up and Mick, Beth, Josef, and Jason watched in awe as Natalie transformed. Her purple gown turned white. Its spaghetti straps disappeared and in their place were long flowing sleeves that give the appearance of wings. Her flowing blonde hair turned jet black. She opened her eyes and they caught a glimpse of striking blue.

Natalie turned her head so that she faced them. She looked like a Grecian goddess.

"This is the real me," she said. She remained two feet off the ground and walked towards them as though she were walking on land. She stopped a metre in front of Josef.

"I was born in 8500 B.C. Incredible I know, but that's the truth I swear. And for 10,482 years I have being carry the weight of an entire species on my shoulders. I know that you don't believe me, but you have to because what I'm telling you is the truth, and in saying this I risk everything, but I owe you all the truth," she looked at their inquisitive faces and continued, "I'll start at the beginning. You all know of the legend of the first vampire, am I right?" they all nodded. "Two days before my 26th birthday I fell ill, gravely ill. My parents called for all the help they could, but none knew what to do. Finally they found a man who claimed he could heal me, so they brought him to me. He banished them from the room while he muttered a prayer. I don't know exactly what he said, but I know what happened because of it.

"He must've thought that his prayer hadn't been heard, so he cast a spell over me instead, the spell was to give me immortality. When it seemed that neither of his cures had worked, he apologised to my parents and left. That night, I died; at the exact moment I turned 26. Suddenly I felt like I was being lifted, and then sat back down. When I opened my eyes I was in my bed again. I don't know how, but somehow I was made a vampire. I wasn't turned, as there were no things on the earth like me, so I was 'created'.

"I hid what I was for almost two weeks, until my need for blood overwhelmed me. I attacked and killed a man who was trying to rape a woman in the town. I couldn't believe what I had done, so I left town. I ran for days, trying to escape my feelings of guilt. Not only was I guilty over the life I took, but also because I had left my family, and my country without an heir. You see, my family was royalty. My mother the Queen, my father the King, and I was their only child; heir to their throne. But, even though I felt guilty, I couldn't go back.

"Seven months later I gave birth to a baby boy. I named him Aiolos, which means quick-moving, nimble. The moment I saw him, I knew he was different. As he grew older, things about him started to change. As a young boy he was the sweetest thing around, but as he got older, he became crueller. When he was sixteen he attacked and killed five women. It was then that I realised that he was like me. Well not exactly like me. He was savage; he needed blood everyday to survive, where I only needed every month. I saw him attack one day. His eyes changed colour, and his nails and teeth grew. He sunk his teeth into the young woman's neck before I could stop him." At this point she stopped and looked at her audience; they were all staring at her in disbelief. She couldn't blame them really.

"Suddenly he launched at me. I moved quickly out of the way and he followed me. It was like he didn't even know who I was," she paused and took a deep breath, "He charged at me again and this time I put my hand out to stop him. He slammed into it and broke my wrist. It healed instantly, as I knew it would, but it still hurt me to know that he could injure me and not care. He charged at me again, swiping with his hands. I caught a glimpse of his eyes and I knew that he wasn't my son anymore, he was a monster. He chased me through the trees, until we came to a clearing. I picked up a sharp stone and held it ready to strike. He charged at me again and I plunged the stone into his chest. He fell to the ground and I stood over him. In his last moments I saw his eyes, and my boy definitely wasn't there, but I hated what I had to do none-the-less," she stopped again, her voice choked with sadness, tears trickling down her cheeks at the memory.

"I had to kill my own son. My flesh and blood! It was only after his death that I discovered that some of the people he attacked hadn't died, but had become just like him. For hundreds of years I watched as these people attacked and turned others. It hurt me to know that I was the reason for it all," she stopped and looked at Mick. His eyes told her that he had a question. He saw his chance and spoke.

"How did he become like you?" he asked.

"I'm not one-hundred percent sure but I think it's because when I was 'created' I was pregnant, and somehow whatever happened to me affected my baby. Anyway, thanks to him, you are standing here now," Natalie replied. She wiped her eyes with her hand. She took a deep breath and calmed herself.

"What's the weight of a species you've been carrying your whole life?" Beth asked. She stared up at Natalie from her position in Mick's arms.

"I don't know why, but for some reason, I seem to be the life force for all vampires. If something were to happen to me, then all vampires would die, and we would be no more. Vampire hunters have been hunting me for centuries, as they believe I am the 'queen' of the vampires. Some are also searching for the Elixir of Life, or the Fountain of Youth. Well, that's me," she laughed lightly.

"You're the elixir?" Jason exclaimed. He stood up and walked over to where the vampires and Beth were. "You're what my father and his family have been searching for?"

"Yes, my blood has the gift of life. Which is why I could bring Beth back," she pointed to Beth's arm. "My blood can give anyone immortality. It can also turn vampires into humans," she added quietly. The room went silent as everyone tried to take in the information they had just learnt.

_

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_

**You didn't really think I'd kill Beth did you? I'm too much a fan of Beth and Mick to do that. Now I just realised that some people might wonder why Mick didn't turn Beth so I figure I'd explain why. Other than it would totally spoil my plot, I don't believe he would do that to her. He hates what he is so much that he couldn't bare to put her through the same thing. Plus he sees himself as a monster and would probably see her as one too seeing as she would be like him.**

**I hope that makes sense, if not I'm really sorry. **

**Stay tuned for the next part which should be coming along soon!**


	25. Reactions

**A/N: Ok I've been a really really bad author and I haven't updated in ages! And I'm really really sorry! Please don't kill me! If you do then you'll never know how this all ends...Anyway, I'm sorry that I haven't posted, it's just taken me ages to write this chapter and I don't know why really. I'm sorry if it's pathetic or anything like that...**

**Thank you to all my wonderful reviewers. And a special thanks to all who reviewed last chapter, you know who you are...this one is for you!**

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Natalie's words reverberated in Mick's head. He wanted nothing more than to rid himself of this curse, but he didn't know whether to believe what she was telling them or not. If she really was telling the truth, then maybe his prayers had been answered. He looked down at Beth who was still lying in his arms.

He could tell by the expression on her face that she believed every word Natalie spoke; he just wished that he could have the same faith.

"How do we know you're not making this all up?" he questioned. Natalie looked at him for a moment before replying calmly.

"You just have to believe me, I have no way of proving to you that everything I have told you is true, but surely saving Beth just now showed you all something," she said. She locked eyes with Josef who kept his eyes on her.

"We….we should go and find the others, the staff. At least we know where they are," Josef finally spoke. He headed for the door and stopped to stand in the doorway, just gazing out at the floor in front of him.

"Natalie, thank you so much for saving me. I saw what you did. I can't ever tell you how much it means to me, I'm eternally indebted to you," Beth broke the silence that had descended upon the group. Natalie tore her eyes away from Josef to look at Beth.

"You're welcome. I just wish that I never had to do that anyway. I mean I'm glad I did it, I just wish that you weren't put in the position you were in, in the first place," Natalie replied. She confused herself with her words and looked back at Josef.

"Come on, we should get going, I'll call the cleaner," Mick announced. He stood up and helped Beth to her feet. She was a little wobbly, so he wrapped an arm around her waist; supporting her. Beth glanced back at Natalie as they made their way out of the hotel room. They passed Josef who was still frozen in the doorway.

"Wait, please, don't go…don't leave me," Natalie pleaded as Josef stepped out of the room. He stopped at her voice and turned to face her.

"You lied to me," he muttered. She blinked back tears at the look of anger upon his face. She sank down so that her feet touched the floor and let the tears fall freely down her cheeks.

She had hoped that in telling the truth, things would be better, but the truth only made things worse, like she knew it would. She dropped her head and let the sobs overtake her. Her shoulders shook as she stood hunched over, her hands covering her face.

Josef watched her as she cried. He wanted to go to her, but he couldn't. The way he felt right now he didn't know if he could ever believe her again. It was silly really the way he felt so betrayed, seeing as she hadn't actually lied to him directly, more by omission than anything. He shook his head sadly and walked down the hall and entered the elevator where Beth and Mick were waiting. He didn't even look at them as the door closed and they descended into the floors below.

Jason watched as this man whom Natalie clearly felt for walked away. He placed a hand on Natalie's shoulder, rubbing it gently.

"I'm sorry," he said, "I really am. If my father and I hadn't come here intent on finding you then none of this would have happened. I never wanted to chase you down, I didn't see any point in it, but, my father had power over me and forced me to join him. I didn't want to hurt anyone, I swear." Natalie looked up at him. He was so young; she could see pimples on his skin, just like a teenager would have. She smiled sadly at him and placed her hand over his.

"He doesn't deserve you. If he can just walk away from you after all that, then he isn't good enough for you and doesn't deserve you," Jason quietly added. Natalie squeezed his hand and smiled genuinely through her tears.

"You're right. I know you're right, I just wish that I could act upon that and just walk away, but I can't, not just yet. I have to make him believe me; make him trust me," Natalie said. She stood up abruptly and caused Jason to lose his balance as he was leaning on her. She headed for the door, and then turned.

"Are you coming?" she asked him. He smiled at her and she laughed. He ran to the door and they headed for the stairs.


	26. Love at Last

**A/N: Ok once again apologies for the slow update. I had a lot of trouble writing this chapter and I'm nto sure why. Anyway I hope it's OK.**

**Thank you to all my loyal reviewers and especially to last chapters reviewers: Sci fi fan30, moonjat54, ImaSupernaturalCSI, and Anna St.James, this one is for you.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

The car pulled up outside Mick's apartment.

"I'm fine, really I am. Natalie healed me, I feel even better than I did before. Now can we please move on?" Beth groaned as Mick tried to convince her to wait at his apartment. He knew that he was fighting a losing battle, but he wasn't going to give up, not after what happened the last time.

He climbed out of the car and opened Beth's door. She looked up at him, but didn't move. He shook his head and rolled his eyes before reaching across her and undoing her seatbelt. He scooped her into his arms and carried her up to his floor. She laughed and playfully swatted him as they walked. He set her down outside his apartment only to open the door, and picked her up before she had a chance to walk into the room.

He carried her to the couch and ordered her to stay put. He grabbed a glass and filled it with water. She smiled sweetly as he placed the glass in front of her.

"Why don't you believe her?" Beth came straight out with what was bugging her. Mick looked at her with an expression of utter shock upon his face. He glanced down at the floor for a moment before returning his eyes to hers. He sat down on the couch next to her.

"Because….I've heard so many people say they've found the cure to vampirism, and none of them ever work. I've learnt not to get my hopes up about any of them. Her story just doesn't seem right; I mean why would she be the life force for vampires? We've been around for thousands of years, it's…it's just…it's not possible ok?" he replied. Beth reached her hand out and grasped his.

"Mick, you saw what she did, you saw how she removed the bullet from Jason, how she saved me without turning me. She's telling the truth I know it. Sometimes you can't try to reason things; you just have to go with them. I know that you don't trust her, but please try, for me," Beth rubbed her thumb over his knuckles as she spoke.

Mick watched her as she spoke, her words sinking in. She was right; he should give her a chance to prove herself at least. He suddenly felt bad for the way he reacted, but then he realised that it wasn't his reaction that had hurt her; it was Josef's. Now that he thought about it, he remembered that she looked at Josef almost the entire time she spoke. He shook his head as he thought of his friend leaving her standing there.

"Ok, I'll try," he smiled. Beth grinned and without warning she leaned in and placed a gentle kiss upon his lips. He was so shocked that he didn't respond, he just sat there in stunned silence. She pulled away from him.

"I'm sorry," she apologised and looked down at the floor. Mick placed a finger under her chin and tilted her head up to his.

"Never apologise when you've done nothing wrong," he whispered before his lips connected with hers in a fiercely passionate kiss. Beth moaned as his kiss sent heat to her core. She parted her lips and his tongue slipped in her mouth. Their tongues met in a fierce dance of love. Her hands found their way into his hair and she ran her fingers through it; loving the feel of it beneath her finger tips.

Mick ran his hands up and down her back lovingly, lightly tickling her here and there. He pushed her back gently and she slipped down underneath him. She wrapped her legs around his thighs bringing them closer together. He moaned against her lips when he felt her wet warmth through her trousers. She pulled him closer, feeling his covered arousal push against her.

"I need you," she whispered as they pulled apart for air. He caressed her delicate face with his finger, paying attention to her swollen lips.

"You have me," he replied. His lips crashed against hers again as her fingers began to undo the buttons on his shirt. The tips of her fingers brushed against his skin and he gasped. She smiled to herself and kissed him again.

He helped her to pull the shirt off his body, and then quickly rid her of her own. His fingers traced her breasts through her bra and she cringed at the thought of the full cup, cream coloured bra she wore. If only this had been any other day then right now he would be caressing sexy lace covered breasts. Her thoughts were brought back to the sensations he was creating when she felt his hand slip behind her and the bra get pulled away from her body.

He moaned out her name at the sight of her naked torso and he leaned down to place tender kisses along her collar bone and through the valley between her breasts. Her hands massaged his back, feeling the muscles move. She slipped one hand down and slowly undid his jeans. Using her feet she pulled his jeans down his legs and sent them flying to the floor. She giggled at the sight of his blood red boxers.

He growled sexily against her chest and nipped her with his teeth. She stopped laughing and he removed her trousers and underwear in one quick movement. His fingers traced the silky folds between her legs, teasing her gently.

"Take me," she murmured as she struggled to rid him of his boxers. He kissed her lips and helped her to slide the offending garment off his body. She wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him into her.

"I love you," he confessed as he plunged into her. Beth didn't have a chance to reply as the pleasure began to build inside her. She moaned and moved with him as he began to thrust steadily into her. She chanted his name as her peak approached and screamed it as she came flying over the edge of passion and down into the depths below. He thrust into her a few more times before joining her in the waters of pleasure.

"I love you too," she smiled as she kissed him again.


	27. Twists

**A/N: Ok, look! I'm getting better at update quicker again!! I found this chapter easier to write which I must say that I'm really, really happy about :)**

**Thank you to all my loyal reviewers and welcome to the new reviewers! It's always nice to know that people actually read this nonsense I write lol.**

**This one is for last chapters reviewers: Scififan30, ImaSupernaturalCSI, LizThatsRight2, Wildfire101, moonjat54, and BeautifulxxDisaster.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Natalie and Jason walked into the old Mason building. Well building probably wasn't the right word; derelict shed was more like it. They walked carefully into the shed and looked around.

"This is where they were last I saw them," Jason told her. He pointed to a door at the back of the room. They slowly walked towards it.

"So you really are a vampire huh? I mean _the_ vampire…." Jason asked. He had been curious about her since he first heard the legend, but he never wanted to hurt her in any way.

"Yeah, I am, and believe me it's not all that great," she replied. She took a few more steps before stopping. She closed her eyes and focused on the sounds coming from the door. She could hear muffled voices, one distinctly male, the other belonging to one of her staff.

"There's someone else here," she turned to Jason and eyed him suspiciously. She didn't know whether to trust him completely or not. If this was a trap, then she was practically dead already. If she died, then a large part of the world's population would die with her. She knew that would be very strange, one of those unexplainable happenings. She knew that vampire hunters could be very cunning and convincing when they wanted you to believe them, but was Jason really against her.

She looked him straight in the eye, searching for a clue as to whether to believe him.

"Is this a trap?" she asked. He looked at her a moment then spoke.

"I swear on my life that I didn't know anyone would be here. I honestly don't want to hurt you," Jason replied. Something in the way he spoke made Natalie unsure about him. She normally could pick the bad people out a crowd, but Jason was different, he was more complex than most.

"You don't want to hurt me, but you want to take my blood don't you? You want to drink from the Fountain of Youth. I can't believe I fell for it. You're a lot better than I thought you would be, I honestly never expected you to be so young, maybe I'm growing a little rusty in my old age," Natalie said sarcastically. She had figured it out. Peter hadn't forced Jason into anything that he didn't want to do. Jason went along willingly, perhaps even eagerly, and decided to pretend to be innocent in it all when he realised that Beth wasn't the one they wanted, he played the victim to get them all to trust him.

"Get away from me!" she warned. She stepped back and he followed. He had a glint in his eye that she couldn't quite identify. It was so familiar, yet so strange. She could have sworn that she had seen it somewhere before, in another time. Suddenly it clicked with her where she had seen it before.

"No, it can't be….you can't be…." She stammered. She continued to walk backwards until she hit the wall. Jason stood in front of her menacingly. He grinned sadistically at her, his teeth gleaming white in the small ray of light that hit his face.

"No….you're….you're dead….I….I killed you," she shook her head in disbelief.

"My dear, I would've thought that you of all people wouldn't question the supernatural. You know how things just happen," he grinned at her. She recoiled from him. Her powers were of no use to her at this time, so she didn't even bother thinking about them.

"I never question the supernatural, but I killed you and I didn't turn you, I have never turned anyone. So how do you come to be here? You can't possibly have survived my attack," she stood up straighter and looked him in the eye as she spoke. Even his eyes were the same, just as they used to be. She fought to keep the bile down as memories of him flashed through her mind.

"_No! Please don't! Please!" she begged. Tears streamed down her face making clean paths through her dirt covered face. She let out a soft scream as a hand roughly stroked her breast. She turned her face away from her attacker, refusing to let him see her cry._

_He ran his hands over her gorgeous body. She had a curvaceous figure, one any woman would be jealous of. With full breasts and long, toned legs, she really was a beauty. She swallowed the bile that threatened to come up and tried in vain to move out of his grasp._

_His hands moved from her breasts to the hem of her dress. He hoisted it up around her hips and placed himself at her entrance. She tried with all her might to pull away from him, but even her superior strength wouldn't make him budge. She kept her face to the side as he entered her, causing her to groan in pain. As he moved within her she thought up ways she could exact revenge, and whether today or fifty years from now she knew that she would get revenge; she always did._

"Pleasant times those," he laughed. It was as if he knew what she was thinking, but it was probably only because he knew that that was what she would think of. He laughed again and she slapped him; hard. He turned his face to the side at the force of her hit. He rubbed his cheek and spat blood onto the floor.

"You shouldn't have done that," he mocked. Inside she was cringing. She knew how cruel he could be, but he had said that he wouldn't hurt her, maybe he would leave her in one piece, but then again, she knew what he was like and his word meant nothing. She kept her gaze locked on his and braced herself for the fight of her life.


	28. Regrets

**A/N: Ok this one is short and for that I apologise, but I didn't want to drag it out and confuse you all...anyway, this is sorta just showing how Josef's feeling at this moment in time.**

**Just to clear something up: I was asked in a review whether readers were meant to know who Jason really is and the answer is no, but you will find out next chapter. All I'll say right now is that he is someone from Natalie's past.**

**This one is for last chapters reviewers: moonjat54, ImaSupernaturalCSI, scrappyearnhardt.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Josef paced the length of the mat in his living room. He felt like a right ass over how he acted with Natalie. She was clearly risking a lot in telling them what she did, then he went and acted like the jerk his is. His heart had broken when he saw the devastated look in her beautiful eyes as he walked away. He was fighting with himself whether to go to her or stay where he was.

He looked at the door, then realised that he didn't know where she would be. For all he knew she could've left the hotel and gone somewhere else. He mentally kicked himself for walking away from her. He was such a coward when it came to his feelings, and after four-hundred years he thought he would've been able to handle a little bump in the road.

In all his relationships he had always been the oldest of the pair, excluding his thing with Lola. Maybe he found it intimidating to be with someone who was older than him, or maybe it was the fact that if you twist the facts around, Natalie, in a way, was almost his mother. She was his life force; the very reason he stood where he did at this very moment. If it wasn't for her all those years ago, he would never have seen the things he did; he wouldn't have been alive to see four centuries pass.

He sat down in the nearest chair and perched himself precariously on the edge. He put his head in his hands and cursed himself. Suddenly he felt cold, and weak, as though his energy was being drained. He pulled his head up and sat back in the chair. He swayed slightly and felt his consciousness start to slip away. He didn't understand it, not one bit of it. He never lost consciousness; not ever.

Just as suddenly as they came, the feelings left. It was then that he knew what had caused it. Something was happening to Natalie. He stood up and headed for his garage. He didn't know where he would find her, but he knew that she needed him. He grabbed the keys to his red Ferrari as he passed the key rack. The indoor entrance to the garage opened the instant he stepped in front of it. He used his vampiric speed to reach his Ferrari. He climbed in and sat with the key in his hand, poised near the ignition.

He didn't know where to go. Would she be at the hotel? Would she be on her own or would someone else be with her? He closed his eyes for a moment and remembered what had happened at the hotel. Peter had told them that the staff was being held at the old Mason building. He opened his eyes and pushed the key into the ignition. He pushed his foot against the accelerator and slipped the car into reverse.

He wasn't positive, but there was a chance Natalie was at the old Mason building. He sped down the road; unaware of what he would find when he reached his destination.


	29. Dangerous

**A/n: Ok here we go...this is a major thing for me, writing action sequences as I suck at them, but you'll all find that out...Anyway, I think I said a few chapters that there wouldn't be many left, well...I lied...I honestly didn't think this story would be this long! This si the longest story I have ever written and is currently 54 pages long, and that's not even complete. I know that it isn't that long compared to other's but it's really long for me!**

**Anywho...this is for all those lovely people who reviewed last chapter: ImaSupernaturalCSI, Sci fi fan30, scrappyearnhardt, and moonjat54.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Natalie backed herself into the wall, feeling the rough wood press against her. She quickly scanned the room, searching for possible ways to escape; she found none. She looked straight at him and saw the anger in his eyes. She knew that there was one way for her to get out of this predicament, but that would require her to transform completely, and to do that she would drain the life from over one hundred vampires. She would only do that if it was absolutely necessary.

Jason advanced on her, reaching her in moments. He grinned sadistically as he pulled a small vial from his pocket. He waved in front of her face.

"What? You expect me be afraid of a vial? You really don't know me at all," she scoffed. She laughed at him and shook her head. There were only two things on Earth that could kill her, and one was extinct. One was the blood of a Hydra, the other an arrow dipped in the saliva of a Siberian Tiger. If either came in contact with her, she would be dead within minutes.

"No, not of the vial, but of what it holds," he replied smugly. He had been waiting for the day when he would finally get the revenge he had been dreaming of for years; the day he would kill Iliana. He knew that wasn't her name, but when he knew her it was. Now she called herself Natalie Constantine, which he thought was very original. Over the centuries she had changed her name which was necessary so that no one ever got suspicious.

"You can't kill me," she said confidently. There was a 99.9 chance that the vile contained nothing harmful, but there was still a small chance that it could kill her.

"Oh yes I can," he grinned. He pointed to the vial, "This, this vial is filled with Siberian Tiger saliva and I happen to have an arrow here too. So yes I can kill you."

She shook her head and tried to step around him. He blocked her path and slipped the vial into his pocket. He laughed and stepped closer to her; so close in fact that she could feel his breath against her skin. She cringed at the feeling and wished that she could summon the courage to use her abilities, but the thought of draining others of energy put her off the thought. Now was a time when she cursed being what she was. She hated having the responsibility of keeping a species alive. She closed her eyes and drew herself into her vampire form.

"Get away from me," she snarled. She extended her teeth and growled. Her eyes flickered red then back to normal. She saw him flinch and felt a little bit of victory wash over her, giving her renewed strength, and a will to fight. She stood straight and put her hands out to her sides. With a flick of her wrists she lifted some of the debris off the floor and sent it flying. She was showing to him just how powerful she was.

"Fancy," was all he said, but she could tell that it scared him. She smiled to herself and levitated off the ground so that she towered over him.

"I'm not going to make this easy," she told him. She waved her hand and a plank ripped itself from the wall and flew at Jason. He ducked as the wood smashed into the wall. Natalie was drawing strength from other vampires. She didn't want to, but she knew that she had to in order to keep the species alive.

"Thanatos, you have one last chance. Go now and leave me alone and I'll let you live, otherwise I'll have to kill you like I did all those years ago," it had been thousands of years since she had spoken his name and the word felt foreign and unnatural on her lips. She saw him cringe as she said his real name. She knew that the man in front of her wasn't really Thanatos, just a shell harbouring his spirit. She would have recognised Thanatos anywhere. His bright red hair and dark eyes were something she would never forget.

"Keep dreaming Iliana," he spat. She flicked her wrist again and he was sent flying across the room. He slammed into the wall, almost breaking it with the force of the hit. Within a second Natalie stood before him a piece of wood in her powerful hand.

"So be it," she said calmly. She raised the wood and swung at him, but her strength was draining quickly, and she missed. She tried to draw energy from other vampires, but she wasn't strong enough to even do that. If one was closer then she would have been fine, but she could tell that there wasn't any in the vicinity.

Jason laughed at her pathetic attempt to hurt him and stood up slowly. He drew back his fist and punched her as hard as he could. His knuckles connected with her jaw and she stumbled back. He rained punches down on her and all she could do was try and protect herself while praying that a vampire would come near enough so that she could draw energy.


	30. Fight to the Death

**A/N: Sorry that I haven't updated in days...I fell ill for the weekend and although I'm not 100 yet (I still have an extremely croaky voice and a vocal range of about three notes lol) I am back at my classes and thought that it was about time that I posted this next chapter before all my reviewers leave me seeing as I'm down to about three reviewers...**

**Thank you to all who reviewed last chapter: scrappyearnhardt, ImaSupernaturalCSI, and moonjat54...this one is for you.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Josef drove as fast as he could, he senses on high. He sped through traffic and narrowly avoided an accident as a car swerved out of his way. He was driving the wrong way on a one way street, but he didn't care. He could feel it in him that Natalie needed him. Every few moments he felt his strength begin to fade, but it would quickly come back. It was as if some mysterious force was draining the life out of him. The closer he got to the Mason building the weaker he felt.

He hurriedly parked his beloved Ferrari and ran into the building. The moment he entered the building he could sense that danger lurked here. He could smell it every where. He scanned the room quickly and didn't see anything. He sniffed the air, but before he could determine whether Natalie was here he heard a soft whimper. It was so quiet he barely heard it, even with his extreme hearing. He focused his eyes in the direction of the sound. It was then that he saw it. A man stood over a female who lay in the foetal position on the ground, her hand over her head.

In a split second he was behind the man. He began to transform into a full vampire when he suddenly felt as though someone was pulling his soul from his body. He groaned and fell to his knees, no longer strong enough to stand. The woman on the floor suddenly stood up and took a swing at the man in front of him who was distracted by Josef's sudden appearance.

The man stumbled back from the blow and it was then that Josef realised that the woman was Natalie. Natalie literally flew after the man and rained blows upon him. She seemed to grow stronger with each passing second whilst Josef grew weaker. Josef struggled to remain on his knees as his body swayed with lack of strength. Just as he fell to the ground he caught a glimpse of the man's face. It was Jason.

Natalie lifted a large piece of wood as though it were a feather. She had felt her strength grow suddenly and had realised that a vampire was near. As she felt stronger she realised that the vampire was in the room. She ignored the urge to search the room for this vamp and focused on Jason. She threw the wood at him and it hit him square in the chest. He fell to the floor with a loud thud.

She waved her hand and pits of wood rained down upon him. She felt brief guilt over the fact that she was only strong because she was slowly killing another vampire, but in her mind she reasoned that her life was worth more than any other seeing as she carried the lives of thousands with her every where she went. She dared to glance behind her at the vampire who was unwittingly saving her life. What she saw stopped her in her tracks.

Josef lay on the dirty floor, his body twitching as his life slowly left him. In a split second she was kneeling by his side. She carefully picked him up and rested him in her lap. She stroked his hair and whispered to him softly.

"Josef? Josef, please, can you hear me?" she whispered, her warm breath caressing his ear. He moaned gently; he didn't have the strength to form words.

"No," she shook her head as tears filled her eyes. The last thing she ever wanted to do was drain Josef. She loved him, which was a big thing for her since the last man she loved had died six thousand years ago. She held him gently, completely oblivious to the movement coming from the pile of rubble near the wall.

Jason slowly pulled himself to his feet, brushing rubble aside as he did so. He saw Natalie kneeling on the floor and grinned sadistically. He had her where he wanted her now. He walked quickly but quietly to where she was and pulled the vial from his pocket. He had picked up one of the arrows he had hidden in the room and dipped the head in the clear, but deadly, liquid. He put the lid on the vial and slipped it back inside his pocket. Carefully he aimed the arrow and the back of Natalie's neck. Just as he moved to push it into her soft flesh she moved.

"Watch…..out….b…..hind…..y…" Josef struggled to get the words out. Natalie had stopped draining him and he was now regaining his strength. Natalie turned around just as Jason went to hit her with the arrow.

"Not so quickly," she muttered. She swung her arm and sent the arrow flying. She pushed Josef gently off her lap and launched herself at Jason. She dug her long, sharp nails into his back and ripped at the flesh. He was already wounded from the debris that had fallen on him, but this new pain was even worse. He swung his body around, desperately trying to rid himself of this latest attachment.

Natalie hung on with all her might and narrowly avoided the swings he took at her. One did connect with her face, but it barely affected her. She glanced at Josef who was clearly recuperating well. She smiled at him, but in her brief moment of loss of concentration, Jason had gained the upper hand.

He slammed her against the wall, a sickening thud echoing through the room as her ribs broke. She barely had time to realise the injury when it had healed. In shock she had released Jason and he now backed away from her, headed for Josef.

"So this is lover boy huh?" he sneered. He kicked a piece of wood in Josef's direction, the thing just missing his face. "Not much of a fighter is he? Couldn't even defend his woman…."

Natalie hated the way he spoke about Josef; it was as he wasn't there. She bit back the urge to transform again, knowing that if she did it would kill Josef. Instead she charged at Jason, knocking him to the ground. She landed on his waist, pinning him to the floor. She scraped her nails down his cheeks and onto his chest, drawing blood as she went.

"Don't you ever insult him again, do you hear!" she growled. She bared her teeth, and then went in for the kill. She grazed her teeth over his throat, teasing him. He whimpered as she nicked his flesh. She laughed against his skin, and then sunk her teeth in over his jugular. Blood spurted out around her mouth, but she didn't lap it up. As she sucked out the blood, she spat on the floor, refusing to have any part of this monster in her body. Jason moaned as the life slowly left his body. When he was completely drained Natalie pulled herself away from his body and walked over to Josef. 

She knelt next to Josef and brushed her hand over his cheek. Colour was slowly returning and he was beginning to look like the old Josef. She helped him to sit and just stared into his beautiful eyes. He expected to feel a sudden need for blood, as he usually did when he became exhausted, but he didn't, he felt normal.

"I'm so sorry," Natalie immediately apologised. Josef shook his head gently.

"No, you don't need to be sorry, I'm the one who turned away from you," he protested. "I should never have left you like that. I was unreasonable; I hated the fact that in my mind you lied to me,"

"I never meant to lie to you, any of you. I just…..it was a big risk to tell you everything, not only a risk for me, but for you as well. As you have seen, people who are associated with me are often targets…." She trailed off when her thoughts turned to her lost friends and staff.

"I know you didn't, I hope you can forgive me for being such an ass,"

"Of course I can forgive you! I can't imagine me ever not forgiving you!" She laughed. Josef smiled and pulled her into a hug. The room went silent as they embraced. Suddenly they heard the sound of tires on gravel. They pulled apart and fixed their eyes on the door to the building.

"What happened here?" Mick asked. Natalie followed his eyes to Jason's body.

"A….nothing we couldn't handle," she replied quickly.


	31. Finally

**A/N: Ok this is only a short one, but it does what I need it to do...get them all in the same place. I'm not quite through wrapping everything up yet so there will be more chapters, probably 7-8 more, but that all depends on how I want to end the story, but I promise you that it WILL end...eventually.**

**I would like to thank all my reviewers who have told me how they feel about the story so far, it really is nice to know that people actually read this stuff I write :)**

**Also thank you to those who hoped I get well soon. I am getting better, at least I can talk more now lol. My voice is getting stronger and my cold thingy is finally leaving!**

**This chapter is for: scrappyearnhardt, moonjat54, ImaSupernaturalCSI, shell36799, Sci fi fan30, and zombieegirl, who all reviewed last chapter.**

**Enjoy!**

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Mick stopped the car outside the Mason building. He could feel power emanating from the derelict shed.

"So they're in there?" Beth asked as they stared at the grey building. Mick nodded.

"Yeah, they are, but there are others there too," he replied. They unbuckled their seat belts and entered the building cautiously. Beth followed closely behind Mick. Since she was mortal she had to be extra careful, especially when it came to supernatural beings.

As their eyes adjusted to the darkness they saw two figures kneeling at the far end of the room.

"Hello?" he called. The figures moved and one stood up.

"Mick? Beth?" It was Natalie. She sounded tired, and a little bit scared. Within a second she stood before them.

"It is you two, I thought I could feel you coming here but I wasn't sure," she smiled warmly. Her clothes were ripped a little and she had patches of blood on her. She saw Beth staring at the blood.

"It's not mine," she laughed. She gestured for Beth and Mick to come with her and she headed back towards Josef. Mick followed but Beth hesitated. Mick felt her stop moving and turned to face her.

"If it's not her blood…..then whose is it?" Beth whispered. She glanced at Natalie and was relieved to see that she had her back to them and was still walking towards Josef. Mick smiled.

"My guess would be that guys," he pointed to a dark mass lying on the floor. Where Mick stood he could clearly smell the body and the blood on Natalie matched the blood on the body; his sense of smell alone told him that.

"Come on, you're the one who told me to trust her, now you have to as well," he reached out his hand. Beth sighed and grabbed it and together they went over to Josef. Josef was now sitting up and his face was its normal colour.

"Hey, 'bout time you two showed up," he laughed. His voice was a little weaker than normal, but that would soon right itself. Mick laughed and patted his friends shoulder. He looked around the room until his eyes fell on the body near the wall, not more than ten metres away from them.

"What happened here?" Mick asked. Natalie followed his eyes to Jason's body.

"A….nothing we couldn't handle," she replied quickly. She placed her hand on Josef's shoulder and smiled at him. He placed his hand over hers and smiled back. Suddenly a great bang came from the door not more than twenty metres away from them. Natalie and Josef pulled their eyes away from each other and stared at the door. Mick and Beth both jumped at the sound. Even though there were three vampires in the room, they had all been so focused on other things that they had failed to hear the heart beats on the other side of the door.


	32. Finding Alive

**A/N: Ok, now that I have roughly figured out this new set-up for document editing I have decided that it is time that I post the next part. I think it fair to warn you that I'm not too happy with how this is going, so I'm going to try and get it back to where I want it to be; so I apologise if the next chapter or so aren't really very good. **

**I'm almost fully recovered which is a great relief. Thank you to all who wished me well, it really made me smile when I was feeling like "death warmed up".**

**This chapter is dedicated to: scrappyearnhardt, ImaSupernaturalCSI, Wildfire101, Sci fi fan30, moonjat54, and BeautifulxxDisaster, who reviewed last chapter.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

"Stay here," Mick ordered Beth. She went to protest and say that she would be safer with them than on her own when Mick told her that Josef would stay with her while he and Natalie discovered who was behind the door.

Natalie and Mick made their way slowly to the door; both listening acutely to every sound in the room. Natalie had better hearing than Mick and could almost hear the people on the street two blocks away if she really focused. They stopped a metre away from the door.

Inside they could hear soft footsteps, as though someone was trying to move as silently as they could. There was also the distinct sound of soft whimpers, ones of fright and pain. Natalie and Mick glanced at each other. Mick tentatively reached out a hand and grasped the door knob. He turned it quickly and flung the door open.

The moment the door opened a scream ripped through the air, breaking the silence. Natalie peeked around the door frame and looked into the room. The room, like the rest of the building, was falling apart. The floor was cold, grey, concrete and the walls grey splintering wood panels. A large table sat in the centre of the room, a young man lay strapped to it. Lining the wall at the far end of the room were four chairs, each holding a person whom Natalie recognised as her staff.

She began to step into the room but stopped when she saw the eyes of the man on the table. His eyes were pleading with her to stop, so she did. She took a step back and out of the room. At that moment a figure jumped at her, a knife in his large and dirty hand. He waved it madly as though he were trying to cut down trees in his path. Natalie easily dodged his swipes and with one quick movement she sent the knife clattering to the ground.

The man jumped back in fright. He wasn't expecting her to be so fast. Mick followed Natalie as she entered the room, their eyes glued on the man. The man backed away when they entered, headed for where the knife landed. Mick closed the door behind them so that Beth would not bear witness to what might happen. The man lunged for the knife, but within a split second Natalie stood in his way. He whirled around and came face to face with Mick.

"Not so fast," Natalie shook her head. Mick helped her corner the man against a wall.

"Who are you and what are you doing with these people?" she demanded. The man stared at her with fearful eyes.

"B…..Billy…I…..ddddon't know why these people are here," he stuttered. Natalie could tell by his heart rate that he was telling the truth. One of the many advantages to being a vampire was that you could tell when people lied to you, unless they were trained to lie.

"All right Billy, let's just say that I believe you, then who is keeping these people here?" she smiled sweetly but her voice meant business. Billy looked from Natalie to Mick then back again. He gulped visibly before speaking.

"A……a man….a man by the name of…..C…Col. He…..he gave me a hundred bucks to stay in here with this knife while he took care of something," he tried to keep his voice steady but one glance at Natalie or Mick's eyes broke him.

"Right, do you know where this Col guy is?" Mick asked. Billy averted his gaze from Natalie and stared at Mick. He shook his head.

"He didn't tell me anything. I don't even know why these people are here,"

"You didn't find it at all strange that five people were being kept back here?" Natalie couldn't believe what she was hearing. How could someone be so ignorant as to not question something like this?

"Look lady, when you come from the place I do, if someone offers you a hundred bucks in cash to stand in a room and hold a knife until they get back, you do it, no questions asked," Billy replied. Natalie glanced at Mick who had his eyes locked on Billy. She could almost read what he was thinking. He was wondering who this Col guy was and where he was at this exact moment. She wasn't a mind reader, but the look in his eyes revealed to her that his thoughts were following the same line as hers.

"Right, Billy, I want you to sit down here on the floor. Wait right here and do not move an inch. When I come back, if I find that you have moved even the slightest, you'll end up living as a vegetable for the rest of your life. Ok?" she was serious. No one messed with her and got away unscathed. Billy nodded dumbly and sat down, keeping his eyes glued on Natalie.

Natalie and Mick walked a few metres away from Billy before they spoke.

"What do you want to do?" Mick asked. He glanced at the people around the room. He couldn't believe that someone would go to such great lengths just to get a woman. Fair enough this one woman was incredible, but still, it was all a bit extreme.

"Let's set these people free for a start, then we can use the ropes to tie Billy. As honest as he seems, we really can't risk him being free," Natalie nodded her head in Billy's direction as she spoke. Mick headed to the back of the room and began to untie the people trapped in the chairs.


	33. Truth

**A/N: Hi! Sorry I have been slow at updating...I've had issues with the document uploading and have only just figured out a way around it...mwhahahaha...ok well this one is for all who reviewed last chapter...you know who you are...**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Billy sat against the wall, his hands and feet tied, watching as Natalie freed the man on the table. He watched the way her hips moved as she walked and almost found himself hypnotised by her. She was a beautiful woman who could easily draw attention to herself. He wondered why Col hadn't spotted her before. Maybe the reason was that Col was looking for someone who appeared to be from another time, not someone who looked a little over twenty-five and dressed like everyone else.

Billy wasn't sure if Col was expecting a walking mummy, but this woman who stood in front of him right now certainly wasn't it. He laughed to himself as he imagined Col's face when he saw what he was trying to destroy. He didn't lie exactly to them when he said he didn't know why the people were here. He didn't. All he knew was who was keeping them here. He had a bit of a history with Col; they used to work together at one point in their lives.

He honestly didn't know why these people were trapped here. He had a feeling that it had something to do with Col's obsession with finding and destroying the woman he called Tisiphone. He had researched the name Tisiphone and came up with nothing. This woman was obviously not called Tisiphone, as he had heard the name 'Natalie' through the door.

He watched as Natalie met with the man whom he had heard called 'Mick' in the middle of the room. They whispered to each other for a moment, before ushering the now free people out the door. Mick went out with them and Natalie closed the door behind them.

"Billy, I want you to tell me the truth," Natalie squatted down so that she looked him in the eye. He just stared at her, as though he couldn't hear what she said.

"Telling me the truth just might save your life, not that Col would kill you, I'm sure you're quite useful to him, but there is no one here to stop me from killing you if your answers aren't good enough. Now I'm not a violent person, but people who I hold very dear have been threatened and hurt because of Col, and by association they have been hurt by you too. Now, I'm sure that you didn't bring these people here and tie them up, but you stood by while they were trapped and didn't do a thing. You could have freed them, done something to help them, but you didn't. Which means that you must fear this Col man," she took a breath and searched his eyes for some sign of emotion.

"I can protect you from him if need be, but I need to know the truth. I know that what you told me isn't all there is to know," her breath caressed his face as she spoke. Normally it would be a turn on for him, but the tone of her voice and the look in her eyes told him that she meant business, and while she may look like a gentle blonde bimbo, she was anything but that.

"I don't need your stinking protection," he spat. As much as he would hate to admit it, and he would deny it until he was blue in the face if anyone ever accused him, he was scared and intimidated by this woman.

"Oh, I think you do. See, I don't actually know Col but I know what his people are like. I've faced them for longer than you have been on this earth. I know what he is most probably capable of. I can guarantee you that he can and will do things that will turn your stomach. Now, do you want those things to happen to you, or do you want me to help you?" Her voice was persuasive, and very alluring. She really knew how to turn the charm on. Billy closed his eyes for a moment and then looked back at her.

"Fine, I'll tell you the truth about what I really know…"


	34. Waiting

**A/N: Ok here's number 34. I know that this is dragging on but it will end soon! I will be a little bit slower in updating within the next few days as I have mountains of homework that are calling and are due this week (ok maybe not mountains but they sure feel like it)**

**This is for last chapters only reviewer, moonjat54, it is really nice to know that someone still reads this and cares enough to review, thank you moonjat54 :)**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

"Mick, what's going on?" Beth asked the moment the door closed and Mick once again stood with them. Mick ushered the new people into a corner where he could keep them safe, before turning around to answer Beth's question.

"I'm not sure. Natalie asked me to bring these people out so she could talk with Billy. She said she'd come and get me if she needed me," he replied. He cast glances at the people near the wall as he spoke. Beth followed his gaze. She didn't like this situation one bit. The thought of Natalie alone with some strange and potentially dangerous man scared her. She wasn't only afraid because she liked Natalie and thought of her as a friend, but she also worried that if something happened to Natalie, something would happen to Mick. She knew that if what Natalie had told them was true, then if something happened and she died, then she would have only minutes to say her goodbyes to Mick.

That thought scared her more than any other. She had only just truly found Mick, and the fact that she might lose him if Natalie was killed simply tore her apart. She couldn't imagine being in Natalie's shoes, having so much responsibility and so many lives hanging on her shoulders. She felt bad if she had to make a decision at work that affected her co-workers, she would never be able to handle what Natalie did.

"Are you sure that was wise? I mean you know the stakes here right?" she voiced her concern. She knew that Mick hated it when she worried about him, but she just couldn't help it.

"I trust her, I have to. I do know the stakes, that's why I'm keeping my ears open, so I can be in there in a flash if she needs me," he replied. He walked around her, running his hand over her waist as he moved to Josef's side. He sat down and stared at the door.

"I don't know what I'd do if something happened to her," Josef said. A silence had fallen over the room, as all occupants were focused on the closed door.

"You wouldn't be able to do much, you'd probably be dead, as would I," Mick replied sombrely. He sighed and stretched. Natalie had been in there with Billy for almost twenty minutes now and he hadn't heard a thing. He began to worry that something had happened, but then he remembered his own words from only moments before and he realised that if anything had happened they would have been the first to know.

"True, but still, you know what I mean," Josef kept his eyes on the door, mentally willing it to open. Mick just nodded his head in agreement. He knew exactly what Josef meant, he had felt similar things before. He hated the feeling of uselessness, the feeling that there is nothing you can do no matter how much you want to.

"Maybe we should take them outside," Beth nodded at the five people huddled near the wall, "They really look like they could use some fresh air."

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. How about you and Josef take them out and I'll stay here in case Natalie needs help," Mick glanced at Beth as he spoke.

"Wait, why don't I stay here while you two take them out? After all you're the one who likes humans and Natalie is my girlfriend," Josef argued. He didn't want to leave Natalie for one moment, and he felt that if he went out of the room, Natalie would feel that he had left her. He knew it was stupid and completely unrealistic, but he still felt it.

"Look, I understand that you want to be here for her, but believe me, she doesn't need to be worrying about you while she's fighting for her life. I know that you care about her more than you would ever admit, but she needs someone who can fight, and right now you're not strong enough," Mick reasoned. Josef nodded and slowly stood up. He cast worried glances at the door as he went with Beth to the small group.

Mick watched Beth and Josef lead the group outside, then refocused on the door. If Natalie needed him, he had to be ready, it wasn't just her life on the line, it was his and Josef's too.


	35. The Final Battle

**A/N: Ok, now it really is drawing to a close. I'm a little sad about that as I have and still am really enjoying sharing my story with you all. Anyway, I won't dwell on that. I hope to have the next chapter written and ready to be posted in a few days, but it all depends on how much homework I have to do(don't you just love homework? lol)**

**This one is for: scrappyearnhardt, Sci fi fan30, BeautifulxxDisaster, moonjat54, shell36799, ImaSupernaturalCSI, and zombieegirl, who reviewed last chapter.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

The room was silent. So silent that Natalie could hear every breath from the only other occupant of the room without even trying. For a moment she enjoyed the silence, but then she realised that for the room to be so dead silent, something had to be wrong.

She looked at Billy who had a frightened expression upon his face.

"B….b…be…..behind….y…you," he stuttered quietly. His eyes widened as though he had just witnessed something horrific. Natalie quickly turned around and came face to face with what she would describe as the devil himself. The man was tall, taller than her, probably almost 6'8" and his once blonde hair was tinted red, by a substance she could smell was blood. His clothes were tatty, but hinted of previous glory. His pale skin was coated with a thin layer of grime.

"Ahh….you must be Col," she smiled a fake smile. She cringed inwardly at his stench as he stepped closer to her. As he came closer she got a good look at his face. He had fine features and pure black eyes. They were so black that she couldn't distinguish between the pupil and the rest of the eye. If it weren't for his eyes and his appearance, he could be classed as handsome.

"Yes, and you must be the mighty Adrasteia, or should I say Natalie Constantine," he smiled back at her. He was articulate and had the type of voice one could listen to for hours on end.

"I must admit, you're not what I expected," Natalie remained calm and feigned boredom. Col laughed.

"That's what everyone says ma'am," his voice really was pleasant. For a moment Natalie almost forgot that Col was the enemy. She mentally berated herself for thinking that this man with a dishevelled appearance could be anything other than the monster people made him out to be.

"I'm sure they do. Now would you care to explain to me why you found it necessary to kidnap and murder members of my staff?" she asked casually, as if it were the most natural thing on earth for her to question a man about murders.

"Why should I tell you anything? You'd just kill me when I spoke the final words," his voice held the same casual tone as hers. His eyes never wavered from hers and she felt that he was trying to intimidate her into backing down.

"You know, for someone so strong I would've thought that you would be above trying to intimidate a woman into doing what you want. I picked you to be more of a 'seduce them and control them' type," she ignored his question.

"Right and I picked you to be a weakling," he replied, a sharpness to his voice that caught her off guard. He was obviously sensitive when it came to romance, or anything to do with it.

"You know, I imagined that you were some short, fat, ugly beast of a man. I didn't expect to be facing a filthy yet somewhat handsome man," she bit back. It was soon becoming evident to Col that she gave as good as she got.

"And I imagined that you were an ugly old hag who could be easily broken. I guess we were both wrong," he stepped toward her and she took an instinctive step back. He chuckled at her and stopped moving.

"Ok, I'll stay back here," he laughed although his voice held no trace of humour.

"I'm not afraid of you, and I'm not going to be intimidated by you. I'm the most powerful being on the face of this earth, no mere human is going to scare me," she laughed at him. In truth she was frightened, but she had enough experience to be able to mask her fright perfectly. That was her secret for always appearing to be calm and in control; she simply masked her fright and used it to her advantage. Fright for her was like a steroid, it gave her strength.

"Oh, well it's a good thing I'm not a mere human then isn't it," he replied. His words caught her off guard and for a moment her calm façade slipped and he caught a glimpse of her vulnerability. He seemed to read her thoughts with his next words.

"You're wondering how that can possibly be aren't you? Since I couldn't tell whether you were The One or not," she shivered as he spoke. She hated it when people practically read her mind.

"I'm not going to lie and say that I'm not intrigued, but really it's not my business," she brushed off his comment as best she could and regained her calm and casual composure.

"You're right, it's not. But you however are my business," Col's voice lost its light tone and became dark and deadly serious. He was over the light bantering; he wanted to get down to business.

"Right, and how am I your business exactly? Let me guess…..you want my blood? Or maybe you just want to kill me," Natalie changed her tone as well. Billy cringed at the change of the atmosphere in the room. Before it was tense, but still held that air of ease, now you could cut it with a knife. He wanted nothing more than to be on the other side of the door right now.

"You certainly are smarter than I was told you would be. I was expecting some incredibly dumb blonde, it would have made my life easier," while his words joked slightly, his voice did not.

"Well, I do aim to surprise Col," she spat his name as thought it were venom on her tongue.

"Enough of this," he snarled. He lunged at her, his hands aimed at her throat. She jumped back in surprise. He missed her and growled under his breath. She took a deep breath and kept her eyes on him as she backed out into the room. She felt safer when she had more space behind her, that way she had room to move.

She knew that this would be one of the hardest battles she would ever fight, but she knew she had to do it, and do it alone. This man had tortured some of the people she held dearest, and for that he would pay. Billy was merely a pawn in this game, drawing her and Col together, and he was of no importance. She focused on Col and easily avoided him as he flew at her again.

She didn't know what he was, he certainly wasn't a vampire, but whatever he was he must be fairly powerful to hold so many people under his command. She side-stepped as he swung his fist at her. He narrowly missed her cheek and cursed at himself for the slight miscalculation. He swung at her again and again until he finally made contact with her flesh.

His punch snapped her head to the side with such force that if she was human it would have killed her. A sickening crunch came from her neck as it snapped. Billy gasped and stared in amazement as Natalie slowly repositioned her head and waited while her neck quickly healed.

"That wasn't nice," she mockingly scolded. Col laughed and launched himself at her. This time he tackled her to the ground. She was surprised that she hadn't moved in time and now found herself writhing on the ground. Her mind flashed back to the night with Thanatos and it gave her the strength to fight against him. She beat her fists against his back ferociously. She felt his ribs crack beneath her hands and continued to hit, gradually getting harder and harder with her blows.

Col cried out in agony as she rained punches down upon his back. He felt his ribs break and bit back a scream as one snapped completely. For such a beautiful and old woman she sure could hit. He didn't know whether he expected to be weak and a complete ditz, but he certainly wasn't expecting someone who could defeat even the greatest of fighters. If he really thought about it, for her to have survived such a long time she must be good in battle.

He groaned again and punched her jaw, causing her blows to cease. He quickly pulled away from her and stumbled back. His ribs ached, but he knew this fight wasn't over. He waited for her to stand before charging at her. She blocked is punches and managed to land a few of her own. He landed one punch in her throat, momentarily blocking her airway. She fell back and landed on the ground again. Col landed on top of her and instantly his arm found its way to her throat. He pushed down, cutting off her breathing. She struggled against his arm desperately trying to allow herself air.

She didn't know why she struggled. She didn't need to breathe anyway, she was in fact already dead, or the living dead or undead as some would say. She only breathed out of habit. She smiled at him and ceased struggling. Suddenly she heard the door burst open and someone scream. Her eyes scanned the room and she realised that Billy had screamed. She glanced at the door and saw Mick standing there, completely vamped out. He clutched a sharp dagger in his hand, his knuckles white from holding it so tight.

Before she could call him off and tell him that she could handle it, he lunged at Col. The dagger struck out and cut his throat. Blood spurted out everywhere as Col's body fell to the ground. Natalie slipped out of the way, watching as Col's eyes fell upon hers. She watched as the light behind his eyes slowly faded and his breathing stopped.


	36. Talk

**A/N: Ok this is the second last chapter. I've probably wrapped it rather quickly, but it all came to me yesterday so I wrote it.**

**This is for: Sci fi fan30, scrappyearnhardt, ImaSupernaturalCSI, and moonjat54.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Mick listened as Natalie and Col spoke, his ears picking up every slight change of tone. When he heard the fight break out he quickly started searching for a weapon. Sure he was a vampire and could kill someone by draining them, but he didn't want to taste this bastards blood, he only wanted to watch as it fell upon the floor; nothing more.

He found a dagger on the floor under some rubble and thanked the Lord that someone had left it in the building before it was condemned. Holding the dagger he leaned against the door, his ear pressed against the wood. He could hear Josef and Beth talking to the now free captives and hoped desperately that Josef couldn't hear what he could.

He heard Natalie fall to the ground, and then heard something he didn't want to ever hear. Her breathing stopped. Without thinking twice he burst through the door and attacked Col. He was completely vamped out. He didn't really know why, maybe it was just for the scare factor.

His eyes saw everything in slow motion as he dragged the jaggered blade across soft, white flesh. He watched as Col crumpled to the floor, blood pouring from the new wound in his throat.

Suddenly his vision returned to normal and he dropped the dagger. He turned to Natalie who was standing beside him.

"Thank you," she placed a hand on his shoulder. He nodded his head and just stared at Col's still bleeding body. He had never felt such joy at taking a life as he had moments ago. There was something about knowing that he was saving his species that made killing Col right.

They heard a whimper from the wall and turned to see Billy sitting there, his eyes wide in horror. It occurred to them that Billy had never seen a vampire before and that seeing Mick just now would have given him the fright of his life.

"Billy, are you ok?" Natalie's voice was filled with concern. While Billy had helped to detain her staff, she knew that he wasn't the one behind everything. Yes, he would have to be punished, but for now she would forget about all that and just treat him as she would anyone else.

"I…..y…..h…." he couldn't find words as he looked from Natalie, to Mick and then to Col's body.

"I know, and I'm sorry that you had to witness all this. If there was a way I would wipe it from your memory, but I can't so you have to swear to me that you will never, and I mean never, speak of what happened in here to anyone…..and believe me, I can follow you for decades making sure that you don't say anything, and if you do, whether I'm there or not, I'll find out as I have many contacts all over the world," she cautioned. He nodded dumbly and allowed Natalie to help him stand.

They walked quietly out of the room and out into the fresh air outside the building. When they approached the small group standing near the road they were met with a squeal of delight.

"Mick! Natalie! You're all right!" Beth cried as she threw herself into Mick's arms. She caught him off guard, but he wrapped his arms around her none-the-less and laughed.

"Yes, we're both fine," he replied placing a kiss on Beth's lips. Josef turned to face Natalie, relief evident upon his handsome face. Without a word he moved over to her and pulled her into his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck and welcomed his embrace. She pulled away slightly to smile and press and loving kiss to his lips. He smiled against her lips and kissed her back.

With the danger now gone they were free to live their lives. Josef loved the thought of having Natalie by his side for eternity. He couldn't imagine his world without her. He used to think that all he needed were his freshies and his money, but now he realised that you never truly have anything until you have love, and now he had that he felt that he was complete. He hugged Natalie tighter and kissed her feverishly. She laughed lightly and pulled away. Her eyes changed from happy and carefree to serious.

"We need to talk," she whispered. His face fell at her words. Whenever someone said those four words he knew that whatever was to come next wasn't going to be good.


	37. The Final Talk Finale

**A/N: Ok well here it is...the final chapter...I can't believe that it is finally finished! I've never written a story this long before! It's 65 pages! That's a lot for me...**

**I would like to thank all those who have stuck with me through this. I would thank you all individually but that would take too long...so just know that I really appreciate it!**

**This final part is for all who have ever reviewed my story.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

"I have to leave," Natalie said sadly as she walked Josef away from the group. He held her hand tightly, not letting go. He stood silently for a moment, just staring at her, letting her words sink in.

"Why?" he asked softly. Natalie bowed her head and took a breath. She squeezed his hand before speaking.

"I have to. I came here for one reason, and now I have to go home. I wish that I could stay here with you, but I can't stay in any place for any length of time. It's just too dangerous. I know that we have won this battle, but there are many more that await me. I'm one of the most hunted people in the entire world. I need you to know this and to understand why I can't stay," her words came out in a rush and she wasn't entirely sure that it made sense. What she really wanted for him to understand was that she did love him, and that he wasn't the reason she was going. In a way he was, but only in the way that she wanted him to stay safe, and if she was with him, then he would never be safe.

"I can….I can protect you…..my….my men….they'll protect you….." his voiced trailed off as he looked into her eyes. This wasn't like him; he never struggled to find his words. The look in her eyes told him that it was pointless; she would never change her mind.

"No one can protect me. I'm like a bomb just waiting to explode. Anyone near me when I go off will go down with me. I have people the world over who want me dead, and if I stayed with you and these people caught wind of where I was, they wouldn't hesitate to hurt you in order to get to me, and I couldn't live with myself if anything ever happened to you," tears filled her eyes and she didn't bother to try and hide them. She knew that they were going to fall no matter what she did.

"But……I love you…." He mumbled. His voice was so soft that if it weren't for her extreme hearing she would have missed his words. She brought his hand to her lips and kissed it, clutching it to her chest. A lone tear slipped from her eye and fell freely down her cheek.

"I love you too," she replied. She pressed her lips against his before disappearing down the road. Josef closed his eyes when he felt her leave his side. He didn't want to watch her walk away from him, if he saw that then he would go after her, and no matter how much he wanted her to be with him always, he knew that this was best. Tears fell silently down his face and he didn't bother to wipe them away. He remained standing there, his eyes closed, his heart holding onto the memory of her. He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned around, opening his eyes.

"I'm sorry," was all Mick said. It never occurred to Josef that everyone had seen and possibly heard everything that just happened. He patted Mick's hand and walked away without speaking. He pushed through the group ignoring Beth's voice as she called for him to stop. He didn't want to talk right now; he just wanted to go home.

* * *

Tears spilled down her cheeks as she walked away from the one man she ever truly loved. It killed her inside to do it; to just leave him, but it was the right thing to do. She picked up her pace as she felt the urge to run back to his arms pull harder. When she reached the end of the street she turned and watched as he pushed through the small group of people and climbed into the car.

"Oh Josef," she whispered. She closed her eyes and turned away. Her voice caught on the wind like a leaf and travelled to Josef's ears. Her whisper caressed his mind and he leaned back in the car. He would never forget her, and never would their love die.

Natalie crossed the street and glanced back once more before flying off into the sky. She would never forget their love, and she would never forget him. She would think of him everyday and have some of her contacts keep watch on him. Though she wouldn't see him herself she would have someone report back to her how he was coping, it was the best she could do.


End file.
